SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Four new police officers were sworn in to the South Charleston Police Department at last week’s city council meeting, increasing the total number of officers to 46 members, a record number for the force.
The officers — Dennis Criss, Austin Beane, Jacob Paxton and Jordan Morrison — will start training at the West Virginia State Police Academy on June 11.
Police Chief Brad Rinehart said the addition of officers is due to the expansion of the city limits down Corridor G.
“He (South Charleston Mayor Frank Mullens) just wants to add more officers to ensure the safety of its citizens,” he said. “We have a wider area to patrol now, so we need to police those areas.”
Rinehart said when he first became police chief in 2007, the department only had 25 officers with a slated amount of 37 individuals. Rinehart said this was because of disability issues as well as opportunities in other cities.
“We had an uphill battle, but we came a long way those first couple of years,” he said.
The officers are expected to complete training by September 28.