Willoughby Police Department
Personnel

Awards

Willoughby Police Department has an Awards Committee comprised of several officers from the Department. Any officer may submit a nomination for any award. The committee reviews the nomination and its supporting documentation and may issue an award or refer the nomination to the Lake County Chiefs of Police Association.

In 2007, Patrolman Matthew Tartaglia was awarded “Officer of the Year.” He was chosen for his “unselfishness, consistency, resourcefulness, determination, and dependability.”

Paul Emch was awarded “Special Officer of the Year.” Paul has been with the Willoughby Police Department for many years and spends many of his hours managing the Law Enforcement Explorer Post. Paul unselfishly gives of his time to enrich the lives of our youth.

Detective Bureau

The Detective Bureau staff is comprised of a Detective Lieutenant, a Detective Sergeant, 4 Detectives and a Detective Bureau Secretary. All of the officers assigned to the Detective Bureau have secondary assignments in addition to their duties as detectives, including but not limited to, Evidence and Property Room Management, Crisis Negotiation Team member, Lake County Bomb Squad member, and Department Photography.

While successful investigations usually begin with solid preliminary work from the Patrol Division, the Detective Bureau expends copious hours following through on the information provided. As was the case in a manslaughter investigation which initially began as a typical call for a rescue squad and quickly turned into a felonious assault investigation when officers discovered substantial trauma to the victim's head and face. Hours later, Detectives were investigating a homicide when the victim succumbed to his injuries.

Honor Guard

The Willoughby Police Department Honor Guard was formed in 1994 and at its inception consisted of 9 officers. Today, the Honor Guard has 13 officers who donate their time to participate in parades, funerals, and civic duties.

The Honor Guard marches annually in the Greater Cleveland Police Officers' Memorial Day Parade, the Willoughby Memorial Day Parade, and the Willoughby Frontier Days Parade. Additionally, the Unit gives military courtesy at funerals of deceased officers.

On March 13, 2006, the Unit presented Patrol Commander David Clair with a plaque and sword for his dedicated service to the Willoughby Police Department and as the founder of the Honor Guard Unit at his retirement luncheon.

Patrol Division

The Patrol Division is the first responder to any request for police assistance. This Division must then coordinate with other divisions for conclusion.

There are several specialized units within the Department. These include the Bicycle Patrol, Motorcycle Unit, Canine Unit, Selective Enforcement, and Emergency Response Team.

Bicycle Patrol Unit

The Bicycle Patrol Unit consists of 26 full-time officers who have completed 40 hours of specialized training. This Unit is utilized in the warm weather months to supplement patrol of the Historic Downtown Area as well as neighborhoods and parks.

Motorcycle Unit

Patrolman Daniel Pitts and Special Officer Gary Betzler are the Department's motorcycle officers. Both officers ride city-owned, specially equipped Harley Davidson Police Edition Road Kings. They are primarily used for handling traffic complaints in residential neighborhoods, although they are still assigned a zone and handle routine calls.

Canine Unit

Kilo, the canine officer and his handler Patrolman Michael Negrea have been patrolling the city since December of 2000 and they have become very popular in the community. Kilo's duties include performing canine demonstrations as well as joining the Patrol Division and the Emergency Response Team in numerous narcotic arrests and local drug raids.

Selective Enforcement Unit

The Selective Enforcement Unit makes use of a variety of patrol options such as marked police cruisers, uniform foot patrols and bicycle patrols. In 2006, the Selective Enforcement Unit engaged in many assignments as well as self-initiated enforcement which included expending many productive hours patrolling the city, specifically the downtown area, to deter incidents from happening as well as quelling infractions quickly.

Western Lake County Emergency Response Team

The Emergency Response Team is an all volunteer unit comprised of specially trained full-time officers from the cities of Eastlake, Waite Hill, Wickliffe, Willoughby, Willoughby Hills, and Willowick. Officers appointed to this team must complete a rigorous physical agility test and firearms proficiency test annually. The members are required to monitor a pager 24 hours a day to respond immediately to calls which range from hostage situations to search warrant service.

Special Officers

Special Officers are assigned to a regular platoon, under the immediate supervision of the Officer-in-Charge, the Special Police Officer serves as a member of the Special Police Division of the City of Willoughby; assists any regular police patrol officer when performing his duties; performs related duties as required.

Examples of Duties: Patrols and observes assigned zone area on a rotating shift basis; familiarizes self with citizens, commercial establishments, and residential areas of the city; observes environmental conditions which are conducive to crime; observes persons who are behaving in definable suspicious ways and investigates; maintains contact with police station for backup, identification of persons approached and computer check of individuals or vehicles.

Records Division

There are five Communications Clerks in the Records Division. Their responsibilities include processing all traffic and criminal arrests. In 2007, the Willoughby Police Department issued 5,434 citations which were processed by the Records Division. Along with processing arrests, the Records Division is responsible for updating the reports pertaining to criminal investigations and complaints.

The Records Division answers inquiries from the general public and assists them in obtaining copies of reports for insurance purposes. They can be reached at (440) 953-4212.

Communications Center

In 2007, the members of the Willoughby Police and Fire Department Communications Center received 28,417 calls requesting assistance from police, fire, or EMS personnel. The duties of the Communications Center include, but are not limited to, handling all incoming emergency and non-emergency calls; dispatching appropriate units (police and fire) to the scenes; monitoring the cameras connected to the jail area and the perimeter of the police station; and notifications made to police and fire departments regarding critical and large-scale incidents.