Cotati City Council
Agenda Staff Report
Item type: REGULAR AGENDA (ACTION)
To: City Council
Subject: Sonoma County Police Officer of the Year
Date: April 11, 2023
Written by: Michael Parish, Chief of Police
Recommendation
It is recommended that the City Council host the Sonoma County Officer of the Year Award and adopt a resolution of recognition for Cotati Police Officer Reinke and the Cotati Police Department.
Background
On November 7, 2022, Camille Markovich was reported missing by family members. Camille, who was traveling to Oregon by car, was overdue. Camille’s family explained that she lives both in Napa County and has a second Salem Oregon residence. The family called the California Highway Patrol and Oregon State Police inquiring if either agency had contacted Camille during their patrols. Neither of these agencies had contact with Camille and the family was directed to report her missing to the jurisdiction she was last seen. Camille was last seen on the evening of November 6th at her employers. Camille works in the City of Cotati, so the family called Cotati Police Dispatch.
Police Dispatchers Cristina Montoya and Adrien McGoon were on duty to receive this missing person information dispatching it to Officer Ryan Reinke. Officer Reinke learned that Camille had last used her credit card in Eureka. Dispatchers assisted with the investigation by arranging a location “ping” on Camille’s cellular phone, entering her in the missing person databases for both California and Oregon, creating a missing person flyer to be distributed and sent a be-on- thelookout for Camille to multiple Oregon and California law enforcement agencies.
The cellular phone last ping was from a tower located in rural Humboldt County. There were no further phone pings indicating that the phone had a dead battery. During Officer Reinke’s investigation, Humboldt County Sheriff deputies and California Highway Patrol officers informed Officer Reinke that a severe snowstorm was occurring in Northern California. Talking with family members, Officer Reinke discovered that Camille was possibly taking rural roads connecting to Highway 199 on her way to Oregon which would take her through Siskiyou County. Officer Reinke worked with the Siskiyou County Sheriff’s Department to search for Camille. At the end of Officer Reinke’s patrol day shift he briefed Sergeant Wardle of the missing person case.
Sergeant Wardle kept in communication with Siskiyou County deputies during his night shift and Officer Reinke resumed the search the following day shift. Ultimately Siskiyou County deputies improvised by having a civilian with a snowmobile check the rural road that Camille was believed to traveling. Camille was located on the rural road with her car “stuck” in the snow and her cellular phone battery was dead. The car was out of gas and the heater was inoperable. Despite wearing every article of clothing that she had with her, it was getting dangerously cold in the car.
Camille was transported to a safe location where she could contact her family.
Analysis/Discussion
In addition to receiving the 2022 employee “Excellence Award” that recognizes staff that go above and beyond, Officer Reinke also was selected by the Sonoma County Law Enforcement Chiefs Association as the recipient of the Exchange Club Officer of the Year Award. Each year, only one police officer from all Sonoma County law enforcement agencies is selected. The award notification is attached.
Financial Considerations
None.
Environmental Issues
This action is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) because it is not a project which has a potential for resulting in either a direct physical change in the environment, or a reasonably foreseeable indirect physical change in the environment, pursuant to CEQA Guideline section 15378.
Attachments:
Officer of the Year Notification (DOCX)