The Associated Press
WOODBURN, Ind. (AP) - This small northeast Indiana city has hired its first police chief, who is the community’s only officer.
Kristopher Rice will soon begin patrolling the streets of Woodburn, the smallest city in Allen County, with a population of about 1,500.
Woodburn had been spending about $60,000 per year for patrol services from the Allen County Sheriff’s Department. Complaints from residents about response time and a desire to have an officer who consistently patrolled the city prompted officials to create the Woodburn Police Department.
“The sheriff’s department did a good job,” Mayor Clarence Reichhart said. “But there was no continuity.”
Rice told The News-Sentinel of Fort Wayne that becoming a police officer was a longtime dream. Rice, 35, has worked as a dispatcher and a reserve officer with the nearby New Haven Police Department.
The city will likely hire other full-time police officers in the future, City Council member Frederick Meyer said.