Dave Reichert
A former sheriff who hunted the Green River Killer and carried that investigative focus into Congress for seven terms.
Born 1950 (age 76)·American politician·Birthday: August 29·Baby Boomers
Biography
Dave Reichert’s public life was forged in the grim pursuit of a serial murderer. As a detective and later Sheriff of King County, Washington, he spent nearly two decades doggedly working the Green River Killer case, finally seeing Gary Ridgway arrested in 2001. This background as a career lawman defined his political persona. Elected to the U.S. House in 2004, he brought a cop’s pragmatism to Washington, D.C., often positioning himself as a moderate Republican. His focus remained on law enforcement issues, homeland security, and protecting the environment of his Pacific Northwest district, notably championing the Wild Sky Wilderness Act. While consistently conservative, he occasionally broke with his party, expressing concern over rhetoric and voting against the repeal of the Affordable Care Act. After retiring from Congress, he left behind a legacy deeply rooted in his first career, where the stakes were life, death, and justice.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Dave was born in 1950, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Dave Was Born
The biggest hits of 1950
#1 Movie
Cinderella
Best Picture
All About Eve
#1 TV Show
Texaco Star Theatre
Dave's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1950Born
Korean War begins
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $7,354Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Goodnight Irene" — Gordon Jenkins & The WeaversBest Picture: All About Eve
1955Started school
Rosa Parks refuses to give up her bus seat
Gas: $0.29/galHome: $9,550Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"Rock Around the Clock" — Bill Haley & His CometsBest Picture: Marty
1963Became a teenager
JFK assassinated in Dallas; Martin Luther King's 'I Have a Dream' speech
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,100Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Sugar Shack" — Jimmy Gilmer & The FireballsBest Picture: Tom Jones
1966Could drive
Star Trek premieres on television
Gas: $0.32/galHome: $14,200Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"The Ballad of the Green Berets" — SSgt Barry SadlerBest Picture: A Man for All Seasons
1968Could vote
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1971Turned 21
Voting age lowered to 18 in the US
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $18,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Joy to the World" — Three Dog NightBest Picture: The French Connection
1980Turned 30
John Lennon shot and killed in New York
Gas: $1.19/galHome: $47,200Min wage: $3.10/hrPresident: Jimmy Carter"Call Me" — BlondieBest Picture: Ordinary People
1990Turned 40
Hubble Space Telescope launched; Germany reunifies
Gas: $1.15/galHome: $79,100Min wage: $3.80/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"Hold On" — Wilson PhillipsBest Picture: Dances with Wolves
2000Turned 50
Y2K passes without incident; contested Bush-Gore election
Gas: $1.51/galHome: $119,600Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: Bill Clinton"Breathe" — Faith HillBest Picture: Gladiator
2010Turned 60
Deepwater Horizon oil spill; iPad launched
Gas: $2.79/galHome: $147,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Tik Tok" — KeshaBest Picture: The King's Speech
2020Turned 70
COVID-19 pandemic shuts down the world
Gas: $2.17/galHome: $248,800Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Donald Trump"Blinding Lights" — The WeekndBest Picture: Nomadland
2026Age 76 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as the lead detective and later Sheriff during the investigation that captured the Green River Killer, Gary Ridgway.
- Represented Washington's 8th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives for seven terms (2005-2019).
- Was a primary sponsor of the Wild Sky Wilderness Act, which designated over 100,000 acres of Washington state as protected wilderness.
- Served as Sheriff of King County, Washington, from 1997 to 2005.
Did You Know?
He was the first sheriff in King County history to be elected to three consecutive terms.
Reichert is a recipient of the Congressional Award Foundation's Outstanding National Leadership Award.
Before politics, he served in the United States Air Force Security Service.
“My job was to follow the evidence, wherever it led.”
