ALLIANCE --  At the regularly scheduled Tuesday City Council meeting, Alliance Police Sergeant Tim Peterson was promoted to the rank of lieutenant.

Lieutenant Peterson is a 15-year veteran of the department and currently has additional duties of firearms instructor and training coordinator. Chief Leavitt also honored several members of the department with Letters of Commendation for actions which contributed to a safer community and a more efficient and effective police department.

Sergeant David LaDuke, Sergeant Joshua Norris, and SRO Tyler Sherlock were honored for their work on the Tanner Blomenkamp case. Blomenkamp was sentenced to six years in prison for possession of child pornography, and two additional years for enticement by electronic device. Key forensic evidence was obtained from the perpetrator’s cellular phone. Without this crucial evidence, prosecution in this case may not have been possible.

Thanks to the diligent efforts of these officers, justice was served, and the suspect will serve several years in prison.

Public Safety Dispatcher Elizabeth Bonds was recognized for her work on improving technology in the communications center. Elizabeth researched several options to replace our antiquated telephone and radio recording system. After working with several vendors, speaking with multiple agencies, and attending several demonstrations, Elizabeth secured an option that met our needs, was within our budget, and will provide reliable recordings for years to come.

Public Safety Dispatcher Emma Reinhard was recognized for her contribution to a smooth transition as the Box Butte County Sheriff’s Office moved their dispatch operations from Scotts Bluff County, back to the Alliance Public Safety Communications Center. With the return of the sheriff’s deputies, came a new responsibility of entering warrants. Having extensive experience with entering warrants with her prior agency, Emma agreed to take the lead in training all the dispatchers to enter warrants. Emma even wrote a Standard Operating Procedure Manual so that all procedures are documented, consistent and available for review.