Morton board creates second deputy police chief, swears in two officers and issues multiple commendations

The Village of Morton Board on a voice roll call passed Ordinance 27-04 to remove the rank of lieutenant and create a second deputy chief position in the Morton Police Department, the police chief said.

The move, introduced by the police chief (speaker 3), followed an earlier effort to create a lieutenant position and an internal review of the department’s command structure. The chief said the second deputy chief role more closely matches the structure used by larger Tazewell County departments and would reflect current responsibilities as the department’s manpower has increased.

The board then held ceremonial promotions and oath-taking. Officer Jason (recorded in the oath as "Jason Campbell") was sworn in as patrol sergeant. The police chief reviewed Jason’s roughly 23 years with the Morton Police Department and his roles as a patrol officer, field training officer, school resource officer and investigator. John Johnson was sworn in as deputy chief after the chief summarized Johnson’s 17 years of service, instructor certifications and previous leadership roles.

The board also presented several commendations. The police chief commended a detective for leading a multi-jurisdictional investigation into child sexual exploitation material discovered on devices found in a semi truck; the chief said the investigation involved coordination with Pennsylvania authorities, led to an arrest and a sentence of 10 years in a department of corrections sentence. Other officers — identified in the meeting as Jake Scribe, Grant Bridal, Logan Noble, Eric Herman and Bryson Stein — received letters of commendation for investigative actions that helped identify suspects, recover property and coordinate arrests across jurisdictions.

An exemplary citizen award was presented to Jonathan Turner, who the chief said reported material he observed on a suspect’s phone that helped trigger the investigation. "It's extremely important, especially in the digital world that we live in now, to prevent things like this," the chief said, thanking Turner for reporting the material promptly.

The board also approved a waiver of formal bidding to accept a Sourcewell proposal from Lincoln Office for furniture and installation for the police sergeants’ office at a price cited in the meeting as $52,340.03 to consolidate space after the village's consolidated communications lease ended.

The board recessed for 10 minutes and then reconvened to complete the agenda.

The police chief and other speakers emphasized the collaborative, multi-jurisdictional nature of recent investigations and the importance of citizen reporting; no further policy changes or funding allocations for the department beyond the positions and the furniture purchase were announced at the meeting.