Gloucester Sheriff E. Steve Gentry is resigning the county’s top law enforcement post effective Saturday. Gentry’s Chief Deputy, Darrell Warren, confirmed the resignation Thursday morning and said Gentry was leaving the job “to deal with personal issues and spend more time with his family.”

Warren said Gentry, who won election to his second term in office in November, informed his staff around 4 p.m. Wednesday that he was leaving the position. Warren said Gentry also informed Gloucester Circuit Court Judge R. Bruce Long and county administrator Brenda Garton.

Gentry could not be reached for comment Thursday morning.

Gentry served as a Virginia State Trooper for 30 years, retiring in 2005. He was first elected sheriff as an independent candidate in 2007, defeating longtime Republican incumbent Robin Stanaway. He was re-elected by a wide margin in a four-way race in November. Gentry and his wife, C. Ann Gentry, who retired in 2007 after 30 years as the ...