Originally from Washington, D.C., Pete Palmer left home and enlisted in the Marines at just sixteen. He credits the Corps with instilling in him a sense of pride and a reverence for self-discipline that have endured throughout his life.  Following military service, Palmer came to Colorado, eventually earning his BA degree in Sociology at the University of Colorado in Boulder. On graduation, he joined the newly formed Lakewood Police Department, an agency fervently committed to community policing and ethical standards. He retired from that agency at the rank of detective lieutenant.

After retirement, Palmer began participating in police training missions overseas. He held command positions in four missions and was commander of the American contingent of 605 police officers with the United Nations Civilian Police in Kosovo. Returning to Colorado from a police mission in Iraq in 2005, Palmer discovered the beauty and uniqueness of Chaffee County and settled in Buena Vista with his wife, Kimberly.

In Chaffee County, Palmer participated in local civic activities as a Buena Vista planning and zoning commissioner, an election judge, a member of the League of Women Voters, and chair of the Chaffee County Democratic Party. He was a deputy sheriff for two years, resigning in 2007.

Sheriff Palmer is an active member of the FBI National Academy Associates, International Association of Chiefs of Police, Colorado Association of Chiefs of Police, County Sheriffs of Colorado, Civilian Police International Alumni Association, and Colorado Coroners Association.