BROOKINGS – It’s down to two in the race for who will be Brookings’ next chief of police.
Anthony Morgan of Kalamazoo, Michigan, dropped out of the race because he accepted another chief position, confirmed Assistant City Manager Kevin Catlin at a meet-and-greet reception Monday night at Dakota Nature Park.
That leaves Michael Burgeson, patrol and training lieutenant of the Yankton Police Department, and Dave Erickson, assistant chief for the Brookings Police Department, as finalists for the position. A few people braved whiteout conditions with wind gusts as high as 43 mph to talk to the pair at a Monday meet-and-greet.
Michael Burgeson
Burgeson, originally from the Pierre area, is no stranger to Brookings.
“I went to college here,” he said. Burgeson earned a sociology degree with a minor in criminal justice in 1994 at South Dakota State University. His master’s degree in strategic leadership is from Black Hills State University. He retired from the National Guard as a command sergeant major. He said anyone wanting more details can view his LinkedIn page.
He and wife Stephanie have two sons, 14 and 10. Stephanie also graduated from SDSU and is a teacher.
“We have season tickets for all the football games. It seems I’m up here about every other weekend playing hockey with the kids. I coach some Brookings kids during the summer. I absolutely love the community,” Burgeson said.
“I didn’t pick Brookings out of a hat. This is a good opportunity, good timing,” he said.
He’s been with the Yankton Police Department since 1995.
“I’ve been in law enforcement for about 24 years now,” Burgeson said. “I love what I do; I love the cops.”
He started in Yankton as a patrol officer, and worked his way up to patrol supervisor, then patrol lieutenant.
“Presently, I’m in charge of all the patrol activities, community policing, our training programs, have a little bit of a role in the budget,” Burgeson said.
Among other things, he’s an ALICE training instructor for active shooters and the Citizen’s Academy coordinator, “which is really near and dear to my heart,” Burgeson said.
“We really focus on the community policing aspect,” he said.
This is the first time he’s applied for a chief’s position.
“I’ve been in my position for five years now. (Chief) is the next step up in my progression. I think we could do a lot of neat things here. They’re already doing great things. I just want to get in and be a part of that,” Burgeson said.
If he is appointed chief, he plans to take his time and get to know the department.
“The No. 1 goal of a law enforcement agency is the safety and security of your community and I think that is being well-taken care of at this point in time,” Burgeson said. “You really need to sit down with your staff and do a good assessment … but the thing I see right now is we can do a better job at the community policing aspect and taking care of individual problems. That’s an outsider looking in.
“I don’t know what all the issues are right now,” he said, assuring that he won’t “walk in and make changes overnight.”
He is looking forward to the challenge.
“I’m excited for the opportunity,” Burgeson said.
Dave Erickson
Erickson is from Sioux Falls, but has been in Brookings for 20 years, “so it’s home.”
“My law enforcement career started in the Army. I was a military policeman (for 5 1/2 years),” Erickson said.
After getting out, he came to Brookings and started as a city police officer in 1998, “working myself up through the ranks,” he said.
He made sergeant in five years, lieutenant 2 1/2 years later, and assistant chief in 2012. He has a master’s degree in public administration.
Erickson has attended the FBI National Academy and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) program.
He’s involved in the community with Christmas, Kids and Cops and the Optimist Club, served on the board for the domestic abuse shelter, and is active in his church.
“It’s always been a goal to serve as chief for the city. But I look at the position as an opportunity to serve the employees of the police department, to be the ultimate in support staff for them. Then also to serve my community,” Erickson said.
“I want to be a part of taking our police department into the future – whether it be through training, education, innovation – to keep us in the forefront of the law enforcement field. I’m just excited to have that opportunity to be part of that process.”
He has an insider’s view of what the department faces.
“Recruiting and retention, right now, is big in all areas of law enforcement, across the country,” Erickson said. “We don’t see the number of applicants that we used to, even 10 years ago.”
Another thing facing all law enforcement is continuing training and diversity in the ranks, he said. People with mental illness or impaired by substance abuse can be highly dangerous for officers.
“It is imperative for law enforcement to be highly trained and professional in dealing with these high liability encounters,” Erickson said.
He doesn’t want his officers endangered, even by the public’s perception of their jobs, and wants to “provide my officers and dispatchers with every tool I can,” including equipment and training, so they can make good decisions confidently, Erickson said.
“There’s a lot of changes that I want to see happen with the department,” he said, including training, mentoring employees, and examining technology so they can stay ahead of it.
“There’s relationship-building that needs to happen within the department, between the administration and the rest of the department. I see this as an important piece that will take us into the future, that will allow our department to succeed,” Erickson said.
“I’m excited for the opportunity to play a part in affecting those changes and take on those challenges,” he said.
Contact Jodelle Greiner at jgreiner@brookingsregister.com.
