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West Virginia Deputy Sheriff Retirement System
The West Virginia Deputy Sheriff Retirement System (DSRS) launched in 1998 as a mandatory defined-benefit plan for every deputy sheriff hired in the state...
West Virginia Deputy Sheriff Retirement System
The West Virginia Deputy Sheriff Retirement System (DSRS) launched in 1998 as a mandatory defined-benefit plan for every deputy sheriff hired in the state after July 1 of that year. It now covers more than 1,500 active members and roughly 500 retirees drawing benefits. The plan is administered by the West Virginia Consolidated Public Retirement Board (CPRB) under Executive Director Jeffrey Fleck, while investment decisions rest with the West Virginia Investment Management Board (WVIMB), led by Craig Slaughter. DSRS does not invest directly — it participates in the WVIMB Private Markets Pool, a commingled vehicle aggregating assets from multiple state retirement plans. Through this structure, the fund gains exposure to private equity, real assets, infrastructure, private credit, and absolute-return strategies alongside larger state pools like the West Virginia Teachers' Retirement System. The cooperative model gives DSRS access to fund commitments and co-investments it could not achieve independently at its smaller scale. The broader WVIMB portfolio holds positions in funds managed by Apollo, Blackstone, and KKR, among others (per public board materials, 2024). DSRS is one of several West Virginia public plans governed by an interlocking board structure. Governor Jim Justice chairs the WVIMB as an ex-officio member, while State Treasurer Riley Moore and State Auditor JB McCuskey also serve. Paul Odell Jr. represents DSRS specifically on the WVIMB board. In 2024, the WVIMB continued to expand its private-markets commitments, approving new allocations to infrastructure and private credit that flow through to DSRS and its peer plans (per WVIMB meeting minutes, 2024). The fund's structural differentiator is its pooled governance model. Rather than maintaining a separate investment staff, DSRS benefits from the WVIMB's centralized 40-plus-person investment team, which negotiates lower fees and gains access to capacity-constrained managers that small standalone plans routinely miss. This architecture turns DSRS's modest asset base into institutional buying power — a design increasingly studied by other states with fragmented public pension systems.
General information
Firm type
Pension Fund
Year founded
1998
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Charleston
Corporate office
Charleston, WV, United States
Principals
Craig Slaughter
Executive Director / CEO / CIO, West Virginia Investment Management Board
Jeffrey Fleck
Executive Director, West Virginia Consolidated Public Retirement Board
Paul Odell Jr.
DSRS Representative to WVIMB
Jim Justice
Governor of West Virginia, ex-officio Chairman of WVIMB
Riley Moore
West Virginia State Treasurer, ex-officio Board Member of WVIMB
JB McCuskey
West Virginia State Auditor, ex-officio Board Member of WVIMB
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions for the West Virginia Deputy Sheriff Retirement System?
DSRS does not have a standalone investment staff. All investment decisions are made by the West Virginia Investment Management Board (WVIMB) under Executive Director and CIO Craig Slaughter. DSRS is represented on the WVIMB board by Paul Odell Jr., who provides input on allocation policy and risk tolerance alongside other state plan representatives.
How does DSRS access private equity and other alternatives?
Through the WVIMB Private Markets Pool, which aggregates commitments from DSRS and other West Virginia public retirement plans. The pooled structure allows WVIMB to negotiate lower fees, commit larger amounts to institutional managers, and participate in co-investments that would be unavailable to a plan of DSRS's size acting alone.
What is the relationship between DSRS, CPRB, and WVIMB?
Three distinct entities. The West Virginia Consolidated Public Retirement Board (CPRB), led by Jeffrey Fleck, administers the plan — handling member records, benefit calculations, and employer contributions. The West Virginia Investment Management Board (WVIMB), led by Craig Slaughter, manages all invested assets. DSRS is the legal pension trust that sits between them, holding the assets for the exclusive benefit of deputy sheriff members and retirees.
Which asset classes does DSRS invest in?
Through WVIMB, DSRS gains exposure to public equities, fixed income, private equity, real estate, infrastructure, private credit, and absolute-return strategies. The exact allocation weights shift based on WVIMB's annual asset-liability study. WVIMB has been increasing its private-markets target allocation in recent years to improve expected returns and reduce volatility.
Is DSRS a single-employer or multiple-employer plan?
DSRS is a multiple-employer defined-benefit plan. Every county sheriff's department in West Virginia participates, and each county makes employer contributions at a rate set by the CPRB based on actuarial valuations. The cost-sharing arrangement means no single county bears the full liability for underfunding.
What is the governance structure for DSRS?
Governor Jim Justice chairs the WVIMB as an ex-officio member, joined by State Treasurer Riley Moore and State Auditor JB McCuskey. These statewide elected officials serve alongside appointed board members and plan representatives like Paul Odell Jr. The structure gives DSRS a voice at the investment table while keeping fiduciary responsibility at the state level.
Why doesn't DSRS manage its own investments?
With roughly $100M to $150M in assets (Altss estimate), DSRS is too small to justify a dedicated investment staff or to meet the minimums that top-quartile private-fund managers typically require. The WVIMB pooled model solves both problems — it recruits and retains institutional-caliber investment talent and aggregates enough capital to sit at the table with firms like Apollo and Blackstone.
Profile maintained by Altss using OSINT (open-source intelligence), regulatory filings, licensed data partners, and verified direct submissions. Read the methodology. Last updated: . Continuous refresh with full update cycles at least every 30 days.
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