Police

Divisions

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Patrol Division
Criminal Investigations Division
DARE & SRO


Patrol Division

The largest division within the Elkin Police Department is the Patrol Division.

The Patrol Division consists of:
Uniform Patrol, Uniform Reserve Officers, & Telecommunications Center.

Uniform Patrol is the largest unit within the Patrol Division, comprised of 12 sworn officers assigned as initial responders for all calls for service within the Town of Elkin. The Patrol Division logged 9,271 calls for service in 2016.

In 2016, the Patrol Division arrested 31 for DWI, served 192 warrants and conducted 1,610 traffic stops. The Patrol Division also responded to 682 accidents.

Patrol Staff
Sergeant Nicholas Hooker, Sergeant William Blackburn, Sergeant Joseph Johnson, Sergeant Keith Church, Corporal James Brooks, Corporal L. Walker Trexler, Officer Luis Rayo, Officer Jarrod Grizzell, Officer Dustan Murphy, Officer Brian Nelson, Officer Jessika Cave, Officer Tyler Johnson.

The Telecommunications Center is comprised of 4 full time telecommunicators responsible for receiving calls for service and responding the appropriate units which include police, fire, and emergency medical services to a scene. The Department's Telecommunications Center serves as a vital 24 hours a day / 365 days a year link between the community and the officers patrolling the streets of Elkin. In 2016, 30,303 calls came in to the Telecommunications Center.

Telecommunication Staff
Telecommunicator Melissa Coe, Telecommunicator Sharon Collins, Telecommunicator Amanda Bryant, Telecommunicator Matt DeHaan.

The Elkin Police Department Auxiliary Unit is comprised of men and women that assist the Police Department by supplementing normal police patrol. Auxiliary Officers are required to successfully complete Basic Law Enforcement Training and receive required annual in-service training alongside full time patrol officers. Auxiliary Telecommunicators receive comparable training as full time telecommunicators as well.

Auxiliary Staff:
Detective John Foster, Officer Drew Armstrong, Officer Kent Castevens, Officer Newell Hauser, Officer Scotty Cox.

Contact
Patrol Division


Criminal Investigations Division

Latent Print 
The Criminal Investigations
Division of the Elkin Police
Department urges citizens
to contact them with information
about crimes at CID

This division conducts criminal investigations and gathers evidence of major crimes. The investigative work of this division is supplemented by the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation. 

This division is supervised by Detective Lieutenant Josh Tulbert, an 11 year veteran of the Elkin Police Department. He received his basic law enforcement training from Wilkes Community College, he holds an Advanced Law Enforcement Certificate from the North Carolina Justice Academy. Lt. Tulbert received an Bachelor's Degree in Criminal Justice / Business Administration and Management from Liberty University  in 2017. He is a member of the NC ICAC, Surry County Safe Kids and Surry County Community Crime Prevention Team and is a member of the North Carolina Homicide Investigator Association and International Association of Financial Crimes Investigations.  Assisting Lt. Tulbert  is Det. Sgt. Joey VanHoy. Sgt. VanHoy  is a 22 year veteran of the Elkin Police Department. He completed his basic law enforcement training at Surry Community College and is a North Carolina Certified Law Enforcement Instructor.Sgt. VanHoy also holds his Advanced Law Enforcement Certification.   This unit processes crime scenes which includes the search and processing of latent prints, crime scene photography and collection of relevant evidence. 

Narcotics investigations are a part of this division's assignments to minimize the flow of illegal drugs. Officers work with neighboring agencies and are equipped with state of the art technology that helps record illegal drug transactions.

In 2016, the Criminal Investigative Division investigated 871 cases. 

The Elkin Police Department encourages any person having knowledge of illegal drug activity to click on the "CID" link below and report such activity. If individuals do not have access to email they may call (336) 258-8914. All information will be kept strictly anonymous. It is helpful to leave a phone number but is not required.

One of the largest problems the police department faces is check forgery. Here are some guidelines that will help prevent businesses from becoming victims of check related crimes. Businesses that follow these guidelines will be given priority in investigations.

We encourage you to report any and all activity that you may think is suspicious. Taking criminals off the streets has been a long time team effort in the Elkin Community. When providing information please keep in mind your information will be anonymous.



School Resource Officer and Drug Abuse Resistance Education

School Resource Officer (SRO)

Elkin City Schools SRO Logo 

Elkin Police Department (EPD) is dedicated to serving and protecting the community and one of the initiatives to meet this commitment is the School Resource Officer (SRO) program.  Important objectives for the SRO are to build relationships with students and parents in the community and to be a positive role model.  The SRO also serves as an informal counselor and mentor, assists with conflict resolution and conflict management, conducts home visits for welfare and truancy issues, and delivers presentations related to drugs, gangs, internet safety, and other topics to various school and community groups.  Additionally, the SRO develops crime prevention and school safety programs and assists school staff with law enforcement related consulting, questions, and training.  The SRO also maintains the role of a law enforcement officer to prevent, intervene in, and end criminal activity on and off school grounds. 

SRO Sanders
 SRO Sergeant Sanders

The overarching goal of the program is to provide a safe and healthy learning environment for our children by positively impacting our youth, building community interactions, and reducing crime and its effects.  A primary focus of the program is to reduce juvenile crime by helping students form an awareness of responsibility, roles, authority, and justice. The SRO program is a proactive strategy designed to bring prevention and intervention into the schools. 

Elkin Police Department has two SROs, Sergeant Scott Sanders and Officer Craig Golden, who serve all 3 of the schools in the Elkin City School system.  Sergeant Sanders serves as the SRO for Elkin High School and Elkin Middle School while Officer Golden serves as the SRO at Elkin Elementary School.  Both work with the school staff and student bodies to maintain a safe environment that is conducive to effective education and mutual respect.  Collaboration between the SROs, school administration, students, and parents extends beyond the campus to integrate SRO program philosophies and objectives into extracurricular activities and community events. 

SRO Golden
 SRO Officer Golden

Sergeant Sanders is a twelve-year officer with Elkin Police Department and Officer Golden has been with the department for three years.  Both officers sought the opportunity to serve as SROs and were competitively selected for the positions.  Sergeant Sanders and Officer Golden feel strongly about providing our children education and guidance to help them succeed and each SRO is involved in programs that develop wise decision making skills in our youth.  Sergeant Sanders mentors the Students Against Destructive Decisions (S.A.D.D.) Club in the high school and middle school.  Officer Golden
is the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) Officer for the elementary school.  As representatives of the Elkin Police Department, both officers work to strike a balance between the role of traditional law enforcement officer and their SRO duties as a law-related counselor and educator.  Both SROs strive to be the model of a positive and professional police officer while also displaying the humanistic side of the badge. 

It's important for students and the public to remember that the presence of SROs at all three of the Elkin City schools is not because the schools are unsafe, but instead it is an indicator that the Elkin Police Department is taking positive, proactive steps to ensure that the schools remain safe and conducive places for children to learn.


 Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.)

DARE Logo

In 1988, Elkin Police Department first teamed with the Elkin School System to administer the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) program.  In 2002, the SRO and D.A.R.E. Officer positions were combined.  When a second SRO position was created in 2018, Officer Golden became the fifth D.A.R.E. Officer for the police department and school system. 

D.A.R.E. was first created in 1983 and has undergone significant changes in recent years to make it a more effective program.  The current curricula is much different in content and in delivery methods, making it enjoyable for students.  While the original program was mostly lectures about drugs and the negative impacts, the current keepin’ it REAL (kiR) curricula is much more interactive.  D.A.R.E. Officers also use a delivery methodology to keep students engaged by facilitating discussions and through individual and group activities.  The curricula was developed by prevention scientists and incorporates real stories and a decision making model students can use any time, not just when faced with drug and alcohol related situations. 

The goal of our D.A.R.E. program is to teach students to make wise decisions, not only about drug and alcohol use, but in all aspects of their lives.  Our children face challenges each day related to drug and alcohol use, bullying and cyber-bullying, and internet based and social media threats.  The D.A.R.E. program is an essential part of their education as it gives them a means to effectively resist the adverse behaviors and to influence those around them in a positive manner.  All fifth graders at Elkin Elementary School attend D.A.R.E. class once a week for 10 weeks.  Other lessons are available for children across all grades, from pre-kindergarten through high school as well.  More than 650 children have daily interaction with their D.A.R.E. Officer, a factor that is important in their growth as a good citizen. 

Law enforcement officers who teach D.A.R.E. have tremendous credibility and can use "real world" experiences and examples to impact students.  D.A.R.E. Officers are selected on the basis of their ability to serve as positive role models for students and their demonstrated commitment in helping young people make wise choices. Once selected, officers attend a rigorous training program to teach them the content of the course and delivery methods to make the training more effective for students.  Our SROs and D.A.R.E. Officer are also involved with special projects such as Red Ribbon Week, Project Prom, health, safety, internet-safety fairs, bicycle rodeos, career cafe, community outreach events, and D.A.R.E. fund raisers.

 The Elkin Police Department’s D.A.R.E. program is funded by The Town of Elkin, the Yadkin Valley United Fund, and private donors.  If you would like to support the program in any manner, you can contact the Elkin Police Department at (336) 358-8910 or in-person or by mail at 226 North Bridge Street, Elkin, NC 28621.  Your support of this important program is greatly appreciated as we grow our future community members and leaders.

 

Mailing Address

Post Office Box 857 Elkin, North Carolina 28621

Street Address

226 North Bridge Street Elkin, North Carolina 28621

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