Silver Lake swears in two sergeants and defends purchase of police drone

Council and the mayor welcomed two new sergeants and affirmed recent equipment purchases during the April 7 meeting.

Officer Bert Johnson and Officer Craig Rowe were sworn in as sergeants of the Silver Lake Police Department. Police Chief Steve Justice briefed Council on staffing and equipment changes, saying the department restructured to include “the chief, one lieutenant and two sergeants” to improve supervisory coverage without increasing overall costs. Chief Justice said the lieutenant pay scale was split to accommodate the sergeant step scale and that the change “will not cost the Village any additional money.”

The police department has also invested in equipment upgrades. Mayor Therese Dunphy and Chief Justice described purchases that include five modern patrol rifles (one per cruiser), two ballistic shields and a drone intended for search-and-rescue, locating missing persons and deer-population monitoring. Chief Justice, who serves on the Metro SWAT Team, said assembling outside teams in an emergency can take time and argued the Village should be prepared. “You cannot schedule emergencies,” Mayor Dunphy said in defense of the drone purchase.

Chief Justice also reported department activity for 2024: more than 330 premises checks, 176 parking violations (warnings and citations) and 150 assists to fire and EMS providers. He said multiple applicants have applied for open positions and three interviews are scheduled the week of April 14.

What happens next: the new supervisory structure is in place, hiring interviews for remaining vacancies will proceed in mid-April, and equipment deployment (including drone operations) will follow departmental policy and training.