Redkey hires new officer (07/07/08)

REDKEY - A new full-time police officer will be starting his duties later this month.

Redkey Town Council members voted Saturday to hire Berne reserve police officer Donnie R. Miller, 33.

He will replace Patrolman Joe Ratliff, who has served on the Redkey Police Department for approximately six months.

Redkey Marshal Donnie James said that Ratliff recently gave notice that he is leaving to start a new job.

Miller is scheduled to join the Redkey department on July 18, according to Saturday's town board action.

Miller has been employed for the last 14 years by Integrated Manufacturing and Assembly of Berne, and he wanted to give his current employer fair notice that he was leaving, James said.

A reserve officer on the Berne police force since 1998, Miller is married with three young children.

He graduated from South Adams High School and has already completed a 40-hour pre-basic training course for police officers. James said that Miller has agreed to serve on the Redkey department for at least three years, after completing courses at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy.

The fees to attend the academy will be paid by Redkey, town officials said. Ratliff had graduated from the law enforcement academy prior to joining the Redkey department.

The motion to hire Miller was approved by a 3-1 margin with town councilman Charles Noble voting against it.

Noble had also voted against hiring Ratliff, saying that he believes the town only needs two full-time police officers.

Voting in favor of hiring the new officer were town council president Doug Stanley as well as council members Terri Taylor and Phil Philebaum.

Councilwoman Dottie Quakenbush was absent from Saturday morning's meeting.

In other business, Stanley advised council members that Indiana Department of Environmental Management representatives had visited the Redkey wastewater treatment plant last week and said that a sludge pump should be repaired and put back in service as soon as possible.

Estimated cost of the repairs is $3,800 and council members voted unanimously to have the repairs on the sludge pump made.

Also Stanley asked that council members look over several proposed revisions for the town's personnel policy so action could be taken at the next regular council session July 17 at 6 p.m.

In addition Stanley distributed copies of a proposed town policies brochure so that the wording of that document could be approved at the next meeting as well.[[In-content Ad]]