CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. -- Virginia State Police added nearly 60 new state troopers to its ranks following a graduation ceremony at the State Police Training Academy on Friday.
Forty-four of the 58 Trooper-trainees are from Virginia.
The others are from Ohio, Oklahoma, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, and Vermont.
One new trooper is from Germany and another from Mongolia.
“Completing the training here at the Virginia State Police Training Academy is no easy feat, and when you add the challenges COVID has brought, the bar is raised even higher,” Colonel Gary T. Settle, Virginia State Police Superintendent, said. “These 58 Trooper-trainees have put their heart and soul into becoming the very best troopers they can be. I am impressed with their resiliency and dedication during the last 27 weeks.”
The new troopers trained in areas including:
- De-escalation techniques
- Strategies to assist people in mental health crisis
- Ethics and leadership
- Fair and impartial policing
- Constitutional law
- Emergency medical trauma care
- Public and community relations
Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin addressed the new class and drew some personal comparisons.
"I will never go through the training you went through. I don't wear a badge. But we're starting together. We're starting together as Virginia starts a new chapter of policing," Gov. Youngkin said.
135th BASIC GRADUATING CLASS
Name - Hometown - Assignment
Alijia Danielle Monet Annon - Henrico - Henrico
Justin Aaron Armes - Stuart - Henrico
Zachary Cole Bailey - Ewing - Fluvanna
Stone Lee Baker - Boykins - Surry
Kennedy Jerome Barbour, Jr. - Williamsburg - James City
Jonathan Y. Bazil - Lynchburg - Charles City
Lucas Jeffrey Beall - Accomack - Accomack
William Brady Blankenship - Powhatan - Culpeper
Johnathon Daniel Blitz - Richmond - Henrico
Michelle Lynn Carney - Roanoke - Culpeper
Christopher John Caudill - Old Bridge - Prince William
Mark Wade Chamberlain - Mount Airy - Hanover / Henrico
Jeffrey Michael Dense - Alpine, New York - Fairfax
Austin Lee Edwards - Pounding Mill - Henrico
Robert Lane Faulkenberry - Lane, Oklahoma - Dinwiddie
Dimitrice John Finley - Chesapeake - Springfield
Justin Carl Grable - Louisa - Clarke
Nathanael Scott Hall - Forest - Dinwiddie
Sarah Francis Halperin - Hardwick, Vermont - Norfolk / Virginia Beach
Jonathan Wesley Hawk - Emporia - Sussex
Nicholas H. Henderson - Cape May, New Jersey - Prince William
Logan Allan Hinnant - Fredericksburg - Prince William
Nicole Noelle Hobbs - Hiltons - Frederick
Emma Clare Hodge - Powhatan - Norfolk / Virginia Beach
Alex Jamal Holley - Newport News - Springfield
Matthew Samuel Honey - Fairfax - Springfield
Luke J. Horvath - Schenectady, New York - Campbell
Logan James Houston - Quinton - Mathews
Steven Rex Huffman - Louisa - Hanover / Henrico
Brian D. Hurlimann - Rochester, New York - Stafford
Kenneth Ray Jamison - Danville - Bedford
Scott Andrew Jeltema - Bitburg, Germany - Springfield
Jeffrey Scott Keeney - Virginia Beach - Norfolk / Virginia Beach
Corey James Klak - Chesapeake - Norfolk / Virginia Beach
Alexis Mykayla Kovach - Chesterfield - Henrico
Sean Michael Laychak - Springfield - Prince William
Kortney M. Leazer - Remington - Bedford
Joo No Lee - Plainview, New York - Springfield
Griffin Downey Martin - Bracey - Cumberland
Kortney Evan Terrell McGhee - New York, New York - Highland
Michael Ryan Middleton - Ashburn - Fairfax
Chance Allen Morris - Powhatan - Springfield
Robert Dale Morris - La Crosse - Henrico
Samuel Patrick Norris - Pulaski - Roanoke
Alex Hoon Pak - Fairfax - Fairfax
James Robert Davis Pettry - Big Stone Gap - Bedford
Andrew Schuyler Poff - Shawsville - Botetourt
Justin Alexander Ratowski - Hunlock Creek, Pennsylvania - Prince William
Joshua Tyler Stahl - Toronto, Ohio - Hanover / Henrico
Malik Rashad Staton - Clinton, Maryland - Prince William
George Pendleton Stephenson, Jr. - Seaford - Hanover / Henrico
Eli Steven Thies - Harrisonburg - Henrico
Gungaajargal Turek - Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia - James City
Daniel Ryan Urban - Yorktown - Cumberland
Eric Grant Vitatoe - Haysi - Gloucester
Alexander B. Wallace - Staunton - Orange
Matthew Dennis Weinholtz - Buffalo, New York - Fairfax
Daniel Andrew Wood - Powhatan - Hanover / Henrico
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