City of Stevens Point Police Department History
In 1847 Stevens Point was unincorporated and referred to as the Village of Stevens Point.
In April of 1848 the first constable, Samuel D. Rollins, was appointed by the County Commissioners “in and for the Stevens Point Precinct for a year A.D. 1848..” In 1849 the first election of officers took place and George Kollock and A. McKellep were elected constables.
From 1850 to May 17, 1858 the Village of Stevens Point became known was the Town of Stevens Point with a population of 200.
On May 17, 1858 the Town of Stevens Point became incorporated and became the City of Stevens Point. The City of Stevens Point was 2.5 square miles in size and had grown in population from 200 in 1850 to 2000 in 1858. The City was run by an elected Mayor and 6 Aldermen selected from the Cities 3 wards. It was at this time that the elected Office of City Marshal was established. The main crimes the police had to investigate and respond to were Gaming, Prostitution and Beatings.
“In 1868 the first of a series of murders occurred which for the next 30 years or more was to give the city a reputation for lawlessness probably unmatched by any equal size in Wisconsin.” (Pioneer Justice. 474) The following are three of most celebrated cases that took place near the turn of the century:
- 1868 Murder of Roswell C. Blanchard – A pioneer cabinet maker who owned a shop on Main St. was beaten and killed on a stage coach on his return trip to Stevens Point. - 1875 Hanging of the Courtwright Brothers – Shot/killed Sheriff Joesph H. Baker, whom was very popular with the citizens. The brothers were taken by a mob from the jail and hung from a pine tree on the “northwest angle of the modern Whiting Avenue and Water Street.” (Only Ofc. Killed in the line of duty in Stevens Point, WI.) - 1888 the murder of Willis W. Haseltine – Haseltine, a local attorney, shot/killed A. E. Morse, a local bank cashier on June 19, 1886 in the 700 blk of Main St. after learning of an affair. (Haseltine was tried and found innocent due to insanity) After the trial Haseltine began threatening to kill John Curran for his role in hiding Morse’s affair from Haseltine. In 1888 on Main at First Street Haseltine was “cut down by a double-barreled shot gun fired from the direction of Curran House.” (Curran’s were tried and found not guilty based on self defense)
“More amazing is the fact that most of the crimes went unpunished, both through leniency of jurors and the cleverness of local or out-of-county attorneys for the defense.” (Pioneer Justice. 475)
“One of the contributing factors to the laxity of law enforcement in the early decades was probably the system, inaugurated when the city was incorporated, of electing a city marshal for a term of one year. While this reflected a healthy distrust of anyone holding police power too long, it also placed a severe handicap on law enforcement by the fact that what took place under one marshal might be considered of less importance to his successor. The records reveal that only five marshals succeeded themselves by one year.” (Pioneer Justice. 475)
Map of the City from 1878
City Police Marshals
1858 to 1883
1. A. E. Aldrich 1858-1859 2. J. O. Wiswall 1860-1861 3. F. G. Houston 1862 4. William Collins 1863 5. David Fitch 1864 6. William B. Gilchrist 1865 7. William Walton 1866 8. John Herron 1867 9. John O. Johnson 1868 10. F. R. Houston 1869-1870 11. James P. Dunn 1871 12. John Gardner 1872 13. Fred Ford 1873-1874 14. J. H. Whitney 1875 15. Frank Wheelock 1876 16. Paul Lukaszewicz 1877 17. Charles Gottery 1878 18. A. J. Empey 1878-1880 (3 Ofc. Department) 19. Count Sigmund Bielski 1881 20. A. J. Empey 1882 21. James Bellinger 1883
In 1883 the Office of Chief of Police was established by appointment of the Mayor.
1. James Bellinger 1883 2. John A. McDonald 1884-1885 3. John H. Finch 1886-1887
4. John Knauf 1888
(Taken on his wedding day of June 15, 1873)
5. John H. Finch 1889-1891
6. Thomas J. Coan 1892
7. William Zorn 1893-1894 8. Forest W. Kingsbury 1895-1896 9. John McGivern 1897 10. Christ Geisler 1898 11. John McGivern 1899-1900
12. Thomas Coan 1901-1903
13. John Leahy 1904-1907
14. Patrick O’Connor 1908
15. John F. Hofsoos 1909-1926 (8 Ofc. Department)
16. Harry Hewett 1926
17. Leo Frymark 1926-1935
a. 1928 Aldermanic-mayor form of government was changed to City Manager form of government. b. 1932 Motorcycle Patrol
c. Sept. 7, 1933, under the City Manager form of government, the Council of the City of Stevens Point, WI did ordain an ordinance establishing a Board of Police and Fire Commissioners to act as the governing body of the Police and Fire Department.
Norman Bader(1934), Jas Briselden(1935), V.J. Bukolt(1936), Dr. T. Dubinski(1937), O.W. Neale(1938) i. Board consists of 5 citizens of whom shall be appointed for 1 to 5 years and appointed by the President of the Council: ii. Board organizes and supervise the police and fire departments and to prescribe rules and regulations for their control and management. iii. Board contracts for and purchases all necessary apparatus and supplies for the use of the departments under their supervision. iv. Board audits all bills, claims and expenses of the police and fire departments before the same are paid by the city treasurer.
18. A. W. Risch 1935-1943 (12 Ofc. Department/Population 14,000) (Outside hire from the Milwaukee Police Force which caused protests and V.J. Bukolt to step down from the Police and Fire Commission)
(15 Ofc. Department in 1937)
a. 1936 Aldermanic-mayor form of government reinstated.
b. 1937 the Stevens Point Safety Patrol Cadet Program was started. i. Officer Joseph E. Browman was the first Stevens Point Officer involved in this program. Joseph began working for the police department in 1935 and it is unknown when he ended his career in Stevens Point.
19. Elmer L. Zeaman 1943-1962
( 15 Ofc. Department in 1947) (18 Ofc. Department in 1958) ( 21 Ofc. Department in 1960)
20. George W. Anderson 1963-1964 (27 Ofc. Department)
21. Raymond C. Kulas 1964-1976 (32 Ofc. Department)
a. Sept. 1, 1971 First Female Officer, Audrey Reeves, was hired by the Stevens Point Police Department. Audrey began the department as a Parking Enforcement Officer on Sept. 26, 1969, and then became a police officer in 1971 before retiring as a Detective on Sept. 30, 1989.
22. Leonard J. Hucke 1976-1983
a. In 1976 the Stevens Point Emergency Services Squad was created which was renamed S.W.A.T (Special Weapons and Tactics) in 2008.
(S.W.A.T. photo taken April 4, 2008)
23. Joseph P. Fandre 1983-1990
24. Robert L. Kreisa 1990-1994
a. 1990 Officers turned over their revolvers and were issued the first semi-automatics.
b. June 1991 Field Training Officer Program implemented. i. 18- Week field training program. ii. 3 different instructors and a 2 wk shadow period.
c. 1993 the Police School Liaison Officer position was created. i. Police Liaison officers are assigned full-time to area schools. Their responsibilities include: 1. Assisting students with questions or concerns. 2. Responding to calls within the school for fights, disorderly students, thefts, threats, truancy, harassment, etc. 3. Teaching and talking to classes about drivers education, date violence, teaching G.R.E.A.T. to seventh-grade students.
25. Douglas E. Carpenter 1995-2004 (45 Ofc. Department)
a. 2002 the Chaplain program was implemented. (Created/presented by Sgt. Marty Skibba) i. Our Police Chaplaincy Program includes five local clergy. ii. Chaplains provide a 24 hour, 365 day-a-year on-call resource during times of need in our community. iii. Mostly, our Chaplains listen. But they also comfort people who are in need, or if someone asks, a prayer will be offered in guarded privacy for support during those difficult moments.
26. Jeffrey Morris 2004-2009
(43 Ofc. Department)
a. 2005 creation of the Stevens Point Honor Guard
27. Kevin K. Ruder 2009-2015
a. 2012 the Auxillary program was implemented. i. Volunteer Auxiliary Officers will work directly with the Stevens Point Police Department in providing assistance with community functions including traffic control, parades, and attending various school functions.
28. Marty Skibba 2015- June 2020 (44 Ofc. Department increased to 48)
a. 2017 Obtained body cameras for Patrol Officers
b. Nov. 2017 moved from basement of Portage County Court House on Strongs Avenue to the new location, 933 Michigan Avenue Stevens Point, WI.
c. K9 Program
In April of 2018, the Stevens Point Police department started its first K-9 Program. The department invested $50,000 for two female Belgian Malinois dogs and two K-9 patrol vehicles.
Our K-9 partners were purchase through Vohn Liche Kennels in Denver, Indiana. K-9 Luna and K-9 Fala were selected, and Jerimiah Ballew and Austin Lee became their handlers.
d. 2019 2nd drug Detective position in the Investigation Bureau.
29. Interim Chief Thomas Zenner June 2020 – Present
In 2015 the City of Stevens Point is 17.2 square miles in size and had grown in population from 2000 in 1858 to 26,670 in 2015. The City run by an elected Mayor and 11 Alderpersons selected from the Cities 11 voting districts. The main crimes the police had to investigate and respond to in 2020 are Traffic Enforcement, Welfare Checks, Suspicious Persons, Disturbances, Property Crimes and Vehicle crashes.
The research that we were able to locate and confirm revealed that the most current Police Officer hired, Officer Joshua McLouth, is the 233th Sworn Officer that has worked for the Stevens Point Police Department.
Lead Ofc. JD Ballew #213 Ofc. Ashley Hansen #214 Ofc. Melvin Plummer #215 Ofc. Alexander Beach #216 Ofc. Jenna Brandt #217 Ofc. Joshua Hilgart #218 Ofc. Stormy Gerndt #219 Ofc. Dalton Kobachk #220 Ofc. Tanner Lepinski #221 Ofc. Joseph Clark #222 Ofc. David Rogers #223 Ofc. Jordan Nissen #224 Ofc. Chi Yang (First Hmong Officer) – March 2019 #225 Ofc. Trevor Zingler #226 Ofc. Ross Wierzba #227 Ofc. Kevin Gomez (First Hispanic Officer) – February 2020 #228 Ofc. Kimberly DesRosier #229 Ofc. Zachary Gartmann #230 Ofc. Cody Stankowski #231 Ofc. Cole O’Neil #232 Ofc. Joshua McLouth #233 – February 2021.
Map of the City from 2015