Bremerton police recognize some of their finest

On a day in which he was set to be honored among a handful of his fellow officers, newly installed Bremerton Police Chief Craig Rogers was nowhere to be found.

For Rogers, the day he was set to be ceremonially sworn in could best be described as bittersweet at best due to a serious illness in the family which kept the chief away from the ceremony held at the Norm Dicks Government Center Friday, Jan. 6.

While the chief was away, Capt. Tom Wolfe of the Bremerton Police Department and Mayor Cary Bozeman expressed many a kind word about Rogers and shared his desire to be in the room under almost any other circumstances.

“The selection of Chief Rogers to promote …. was a relatively easy one, after 30 years of service to the city,” Bozeman said. “He was a seasoned veteran. We have a man in our ranks who had been there, done that. He didn’t come to me, I came and asked him (to become chief).”

The first of Rogers’ officers to be recognized in the ceremony was another man earning a promotion, Lt. James Burchett, now Capt. Burchett, after being sworn in my Municipal Judge James Docter.

Wolfe explained that Burchett was a former Navy serviceman, hired by BPD as a reserve officer in 1991 and became a lieutenant in 2003.

“I don’t put on these (captain’s) bars lightly,” Burchett said. “It means taking on a huge responsibility.”

Sgt. Mark Thompson was honored for his 25 years of service.

“Mark is just a steady person,” Wolfe said. “He’s like the sun. You know it’s coming up tomorrow and you know he’s going to be there for you.”

New officers to BPD are Donnell Rogers, previously a member of the Suquamish Tribal Police; Dahle Roessel, who served in Somalia and Haiti with the U.S. Army, and Jason Glasgow, who deployed with the Navy and Marine Corps as a medic to Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan.

“I’m excited. It’s busy here. I’m liking it,” Roessel said of his new job. “People here are nice and it’s a breath of fresh air, the team aspect here is not (present) in some other agencies.”

In addition to the trio, Wolfe said three or four more officers will be added in the next year with the help of a grant.

The final commendations were given to officers Billy Renfro and Matt Thuring for their efforts in saving the life of a person attempting to commit suicide from the height of the Manette Bridge.

“They are truly heroes,” Wolfe said.

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