POULSBO — The Kitsap County sheriff’s sergeant at the center of a drunken-driving controversy will retire at the end of the month.

Sgt. Jim Porter, 54, submitted a one-sentence memorandum on Jan. 7 stating his intention to retire on Jan. 31, sheriff’s spokesman Deputy Scott Wilson reported.

Porter joined the department in 1992. He was promoted to sergeant in 2003, Wilson said. He was deputy of the year in 2009, according to the sheriff’s annual report for that year.

According to that annual report, Porter joined the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office in May 1992 following service with the U.S. Army.

“Jim earned a degree in clinical psychology from Brigham Young University in 1987,” according to the report. “After 11 years as a patrol deputy, Jim was promoted to sergeant and was assigned as a patrol shift supervisor in 2003. In addition to his patrol duties, Jim has held collateral responsibilities as a field training officer and currently as a supervisor of our marine services unit. The most critical collateral responsibilities Jim has taken on is being selected to the Sheriff’s Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team in 1996. He has progressively assumed greater responsibilities, from SWAT team leader and assistant team commander to team commander.”

Wilson said the internal investigation into the circumstances involving Porter’s alleged DUI is completed. “The patrol chief still has to come to a decision as to what he’s going to do. Disciplinary action could still be awarded” despite Porter’s impending retirement, Wilson said.

Porter is on duty now as a patrol sergeant and training coordinator, Wilson said.

Porter was found intoxicated in his car Oct. 16 at the Regal Cinemas parking lot by Poulsbo Police Officer Danielle Branes. Because the keys were not in the ignition and he was parked safely off the roadway, Porter was allowed to remain in his vehicle, according to a report by Poulsbo Police Chief Al Townsend.

Branes offered Porter a ride home but he refused, according to the police chief’s report and body cam video obtained by other media. Branes told Porter she wanted to make sure he didn’t drive.

Porter was later found in his car in the driveway of his home on Clear Creek Road about three miles outside of Poulsbo by Officer Jennifer Corn, who’s known him for 17 years.

Corn activated her body camera before speaking to Porter and called Townsend and the acting sheriff’s supervisor, Ken Dickson, because Porter’s home is outside the city limits and in the sheriff’s department’s jurisdiction.

Corn turned off her body camera when Townsend arrived to discuss the investigation. Doing so is permissible under the department’s body camera policy, but it sparked some questions from the public as to whether Porter received preferential treatment because he was not arrested by Poulsbo or Kitsap County sheriff’s officers.

Townsend said the fact that Corn turned on her body camera to document the encounter disproves claims that Poulsbo police tried to cover up any alleged preferential treatment given to Porter. But Townsend said in retrospect the camera shouldn’t have been deactivated.

During the time in which the camera was off, Townsend said he and Corn suggested Dickson ask Washington State Patrol to take over investigation. Dickson did not, according to Townsend.

At the time, Wilson said he doesn’t know why Dickson didn’t call state patrol, but speculated that it was because Dickson had determined there was no probable cause to continue the investigation and state patrol would likely come to the same conclusion — no one actually saw Porter drive the vehicle.

Wilson said Porter did not receive preferential treatment and that the department routinely investigates its own “who have found themselves in less than stellar circumstances. Some have been terminated, others have had other forms of discipline imposed.”

Meanwhile, the controversy compelled Poulsbo Police Department to review several policies.

— LEAVING BODY CAMERAS ON: Townsend said the department “will be reviewing this policy and recommending that the body worn cameras remain active during the entire interaction when the subject of the investigation is another law enforcement officer or person of influence, such as an elected official, to ensure additional transparency.”

— COURTESY RIDES: The department will meet with legal counsel regarding courtesy rides “to determine if … there is an alternative when the occupant of the vehicle refuses a courtesy ride home, much like Porter did,” Townsend said.

— “PHYSICAL CONTROL”: If someone is sitting in the driver’s seat but the keys are not in the ignition, does that constitute having “physical control” of the vehicle?

“Since this incident, we are reviewing ‘in physical control’ cases with the municipal prosecutor,” Townsend said in an earlier interview. “As we continue to follow-up on this, we will be seeking access to all similar cases submitted to the Kitsap County Prosecutor’s Office by all county law enforcement agencies to determine if there is any history of such cases being charged.”