2015-P-0106 NEWS RELEASE: February 27, 2015 FROM: The CONTACT: Joshua Kellerman, KHP Public Information Officer, (785) 296-6800 Petigna to Retire from the Kansas Highway Patrol

Colonel Mark Bruce, Superintendent of the Kansas Highway Patrol, has announced that Master Trooper Alexander Petigna will be retiring from the Kansas Highway Patrol on April 1, 2015, after serving the state and citizens of Kansas for 27 years.

Petigna began his career with the Kansas Highway Patrol in June of 1988, as a member of KHP Class #24. He was stationed in Kansas City, Troop A, and was responsible for Johnson, Wyandotte, Miami, and Leavenworth counties. He served in Troop A until 2001, when he transferred to the , Troop G, becoming a master trooper, where he has remained until his retirement. In his time with the Patrol, Petigna served as a field training officer in 1996 and 1997. He was a recruit class counselor for KHP Class #29 and #30. He was a sponsor of the Kansas “Move Left Law,” K.S.A. 8-1530, which requires drivers to slow down or move a lane away from stopped emergency vehicles on Kansas highways. He also has appeared on the P.M.C.A. of Kansas “drive-off” decal. The decal was part of a campaign to educate drivers about new laws and penalties for gas theft. He was a member of the Kansas State Troopers Association, serving on the executive board as Sergeant of Arms and Troop A Representative.

Throughout his career with the Kansas Highway Patrol, Petigna has been the recipient of numerous awards and honors. He has been honored with KHP Outstanding Performer Awards eight different times. Petigna was honored with several awards for his actions in 2000, when he saved a man who had been struck by a vehicle and landed on an icy multi-lane highway. For his efforts that day, he was honored with the American Legion Law Enforcement Officer of the Year award; a Kansas Association of Chiefs of Silver Award for Valor; the KMBC TV Silver Award for Valor; and was honored in a chapter of the book, Police Heroes, published in 2002. In November 2000, he was honored by the Wyandotte Mental Health Center with an Award for Valor for intervening in an illicit unlicensed senior’s care home. The incident was accurately reported by The Pitch newspaper in an article entitled, House of Horrors.

Petigna is originally from Overland Park, and graduated from Shawnee Mission South High School. He earned an Associate’s degree from Johnson County Community College. Prior to joining the Patrol, he served as a Shawnee Reserve Police Officer from 1985-1986, and as a police officer with the City of Merriam from 1986-1988. In his free time, Petigna enjoys mountain biking, hiking, softball, and soccer.

We wish Master Trooper Petigna the best in his retirement!