Flathead County Undersheriff Mike Meehan announced Tuesday his candidacy to move up to sheriff/coroner this year.

He plans to file as a Republican, squaring off against John Weaver in the June primary, to replace retiring Sheriff Jim Dupont.

Meehan, 49, said he is uniquely qualified for the job.

He's served 19 years in law enforcement, first as a patrol officer for the Houston Police Department. The past 14 years have been with the Sheriff's Office. His goal is to continue the office's services and professionalism.

"We've got a great department," Meehan said.

He has logged more than 2,000 hours in training after being certified as an officer, he said. He is also a certified deputy coroner. He was supervisor of the Northwest Drug Task Force from 1998 to 2002, when it led the state in productivity. He has attended the FBI National Academy in a competitive acceptance program that admits less than half of 1 percent of officers nationwide.

He implemented a free national locator program for missing children and people suffering from dementia, and is working with the National Institute of Corrections on an intense evaluation of the county jail.

Meehan said one of his most important qualifications is that he worked his way up in the Sheriff's Office, from night patrol to investigations to administration. Now he supervises "everybody but Jim Dupont" in the office, he said. He is endorsed by Dupont, his campaign treasurer.

Issues to be addressed are jail space, drug and alcohol problems in the valley, technology and the 911 emergency dispatch, and safety of residents, he said.

A resident of the Flathead Valley for 23 years, Meehan and his wife, Alexis, have three sons.

His Web site address is www.meehansmyguy.com.