Michelle Asban

Assistant Sheriff Asban serves as the first female and Filipino American to lead the Custody Bureau in the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office. A first-generation immigrant, she moved to the United States as a child, inspired by a family deeply committed to public service.

She began her career in 1999 with the Department of Correction after graduating from Class #31 of the South Bay Regional Training Academy. She holds a Master’s in Public Administration, earned in 2011, which has supported her in driving innovation and excellence throughout her career. As an officer, she gained extensive experience working in custody operations at both the Main Jail and Elmwood facilities, served at the Palo Alto Courthouse as a Court Movement Officer, became a Training Officer, and was selected for Internal Affairs in 2005, where she earned Employee of the Month recognition in May 2008. She also worked in the Backgrounds and Recruiting Unit and was one of the first Custody Bureau deputies assigned to headquarters during the department’s merger. 

Promoted to sergeant in 2015, she was shortly after tapped to support Internal Affairs during a critical period of jail reforms. Her leadership earned her promotion to lieutenant in 2018, where she held distinct assignments as a watch commander and as Personnel Lieutenant managing the Backgrounds and Recruiting, the Reserves Unit, and the Health and Illness/Injury Prevention (HIP) Program. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she led the creation of the COVID Investigations Unit, a pioneering initiative within the office that supported staff and safeguarded the well-being of the incarcerated population through contact tracing and quarantine efforts. 

In November 2021, she was promoted to captain, where she oversaw significant jail reform initiatives, including the implementation of the RFID Inmate Tracking System and Jail Management System. Her responsibilities also included oversight of the Grievance Unit. During this time, she also served as the interim Principal IT Manager for the Information Systems Division, further broadening her leadership experience. 

On January 20, 2025, she was promoted to Assistant Sheriff, filling a newly created second position within the Custody Bureau, where previously only one position existed. Beyond her professional responsibilities, Assistant Sheriff Asban enjoys discovering new cuisines, with a particular passion for Ube or Taro inspired desserts, traveling to new destinations, hiking, gardening, and spending time with family. An interesting fact about her is that she understands three languages, two of which are native to her Filipino heritage.