Sheriff Martin A. Ryan comes from a family whose roots in Amador County trace back to the 1849. His family history includes his Grandfather, George W. Lucot who served as the county's elected Sheriff-Tax Collector for 40 years (1914-1954). His father, Martin H. Ryan served for 13 years as Amador County's Superior Court Judge and his brother, Michael Ryan is the current county Treasurer-Tax Collector.
Sheriff Ryan was raised in Amador County, and graduated from local schools here. His law enforcement career began after graduation from college when he was selected as the Chief Investigator for the Amador County District Attorney's Office. After nearly 6 years in this position he was hired as a Special Agent for the California Department of Justice where he spent the next 25 years. Sheriff Ryan rose through the ranks to become Chief of the state Attorney General's California Bureau of Investigation where he was responsible for statewide investigations and an $11 million dollar budget. After 7 years in this capacity, Sheriff Ryan retired from the state to take the opportunity to return home and follow in his grandfather's footsteps.
Sheriff Ryan is a graduate of the FBI National Academy (186th Session), the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development School (LEEDS), and the Peace Officer's Standards and Training Command College (Class 25).