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Ellensburg Police chief presents 2024 annual report: staffing changes, accreditation, decline in overdose deaths
Summary
Chief Ken Wade told the council the Ellensburg Police Department completed a full accreditation cycle with no negative findings, reported personnel changes and promotions, described crime and program trends, and said the department recorded zero confirmed controlled-substance overdose deaths in 2024.
Ken Wade, chief of the Ellensburg Police Department, presented the department’s 2024 annual report to the City Council, outlining personnel changes, crime statistics, new programs and community partnerships.
The report matters because it documents public-safety trends, details operational changes and identifies programs—some newly launched, some expanded—that affect how city police allocate resources and partner with other agencies.
Wade said the report focuses on policing inside the City of Ellensburg jurisdiction and that 2024’s full accreditation review produced no negative findings. “This year in 2024… this is the third consecutive full evaluation cycle that we had no negative findings,” he told council.
Wade reviewed staffing changes and promotions: Captain Dan Hansberry had retired in the previous year and John Einmarch was hired from Redmond; promotions included Cameron Clayson to administrative captain and Cliff Callier and Bridal Potter to sergeant ranks, among others. He listed awards for officers, including Stephanie Drunkayas (officer of the year) and Sergeant Josh Bender (chief’s award), and credited staff…
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