Caldwell pins new officers, promotes two and receives ESGR Patriot recognitions

Chief Brett Ingram presented badges and promotions for incoming and recently hired Caldwell Police Department officers and accepted Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) Patriot Award nominations during a city council workshop on Oct. 26, 2025.

Ingram said the session honored five new hires and two promotees and introduced each officer, asked them to recognize family members and to briefly describe why they joined or returned to law enforcement. "This is still the most noble profession in the entire world," Chief Brett Ingram said, adding, "after 20 years of service ... this is still the best job in the world to do." He also told families the department expects academy training to be "probably, hopefully, the most challenging, 20 weeks of their life."

The ceremony front‑loaded the most newsworthy items — the new officers and promotions — to highlight recruitment and retention in Caldwell. That emphasis came as Ingram told the council the department had recently presented its budget and said the city was "looking really good" fiscally to support public safety staffing.

Officers introduced or were recognized in the ceremony: Corporal Dustin Felice (a lateral hire from Oakland, Calif.), Corporal Jason Amaran (previous undercover and narcotics experience in Oakland), Mark Wachholder (U.S. Marine Corps veteran), Zach Scudlow, Heath Albers, Joaquin Regalado (formerly with Arcadia, Calif., Police Department), and Nicholas James (law enforcement experience in Washington). Ingram identified Lieutenant John Tucker and members of the Professional Standards Bureau — Larissa, Crystal and Jeff Peterson — as key staff who support recruitment, investigations and awards work.

Following the pinning, Steve Eiseley of Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve (ESGR) presented Patriot Award recognitions to Caldwell employees on behalf of deployed service members. Eiseley read nominations detailing how department leaders and staff supported Guard or Reserve members during deployments and periods of military duty. A written nomination read at the meeting credited Chief Brett Ingram and Lieutenant John Tucker for hiring and supporting service members despite staffing impacts small departments can experience when members are activated. The nomination said in part that hiring a service member "was the epitome of supporting our troops."

ESGR members present included Steve Eiseley, Don Carlock and Lewis Katz. City staff recognized in ESGR nominations included Sergeant Andrew Heitzman and Mary Kay Morrison, a city human resources senior specialist. Eiseley described ESGR as a Department of Defense–sponsored, volunteer organization with a mission to support employers who hire Guard and Reserve members.

The mayor and council, who convened the workshop session, welcomed the officers and their families and thanked them for choosing Caldwell. No formal votes or policy changes were taken during the ceremony; the event concluded as a recognition item before the start of the regular council meeting.

The ceremony underscored two ongoing themes for the Caldwell Police Department: active recruitment of lateral hires from larger California agencies and efforts to retain officers by emphasizing department culture and family support. Ingram and multiple new hires described moving to Idaho after brief visits and cited "culture" and leadership as reasons for choosing Caldwell.

City officials and department leaders invited families to stay and visit before the council's regular meeting, and the workshop closed after about 25 minutes of post‑ceremony time for photographs and greetings.