Chico police officer’s life-saving efforts acknowledged
Promotions, retirements were part of ceremony
A ceremony to honor a number of accomplishments and milestones within the Chico Police Department started on a somber note, with Chief Matt Madden asking those in attendance to observe a moment of silence.
The Thursday morning ceremony, held at the city’s fire training center, coincided with National Police Week, May 9-15, an annual event to honor law enforcement officers
Earlier this week, two California officers were shot and killed within 24 hours and a third was wounded. Jimmy Inn, an officer with the Stockton Police Department, was fatally shot Tuesday morning while responding to a domestic violence call. On Monday evening, San Luis Obispo Police Department detective Lucas “Luca” Benedetti was shot and killed and detective Steve Orozco was wounded while serving a search warrant.
“It’s a reminder for us that this is a dangerous job, that these men and women will go out and put their lives on the line for all of
us in the community, and they do that willingly,” Madden said.
Six Chico Police Department staffers were recognized during the ceremony: Sgt. Todd Lefkowitz received a lifesaving medal for an incident he responded to in December 2020; Capt. Greg Keeney, Lt. Terry Tupper and Sgt. Justin Adrian were all celebrated for their recent promotions; and outgoing officers Ryon Mitchell and Andrei Carlisle were recognized upon their retirement.
On Dec. 1, 2020, Lefkowitz responded to a report from dispatch of a woman leaning over the railing of the Cohasset Road overpass above Highway 99, threatening to jump into oncoming traffic. Madden said Lefkowitz arrived on scene, first addressed her verbally, then grabbed her hooded sweatshirt, before the woman attempted to push away from him.
The woman, then dangling from the railing, only holding on by Lefkowitz’s grip, was eventually pulled up to safety, uninjured. Madden commended Lefkowitz for his “decisive” action to save the woman’s life.
“From what I saw, it was one of the most harrowing things that I had seen a Chico police officer do,” said Madden, who viewed Lefkowitz’s body- worn camera footage after hearing about what happened.
“I watched as he held onto her sweatshirt as she continued to slip, and he made one last- ditch effort to reach down and grab her by the back of her jeans. And with everything he had, he was able to pull her up and over the railing.”
Promotions
The three promotions, which actually occurred well before Thursday’s ceremony, included a family member for each pinning a badge to each uniform.
Keeney, who was promoted to captain in September 2020, is the support division commander for criminal investigations, and also oversees dispatch, records, evidence and professional standards.
Madden said the department has gone back to a two- captain system, rather than one captain who served as the secondin-command deputy chief, which allows them to split the executive leadership of the department in half.
Keeney, from Durham, attended Chico State and graduated from the Butte College Law Enforcement Academy and joined the Chico Police Department at 23 years old.
Tupper, promoted to lieutenant, joined the department in 2005 after a career as a professional cyclist, coach and event coordinator. He is currently assigned to the patrol division as a watch commander.
Adrian was promoted to sergeant soon after Madden became chief in 2020. After growing up in Novato, Adrian attended Chico State then began his career as a Butte County probation officer for five years. He was promoted to attend the Butte County Law Enforcement Academy in 2007.
Retirements
The two officers who retired spent nearly three decades working in law enforcement.
Mitchell, originally from Corning, attended Butte College and the college’s law enforcement academy and began his career working with the Corning Police Department. He moved laterally to the Red Bluff Police Department, then the Chico Police Department in 2006.
Mitchell’s assignments included patrol, gang task force, K-9 handler, SWAT team and Major Accident Investigation Team, among several others.
Madden noted Mitchell made approximately 1,000 DUI arrests during his career and was honored numerous times by Mothers Against Drunk Driving, including being selected in 2010 for the California Regional Area MADD Hero award.
“We’re losing a great deal of experience. This police department is a family and we walk through situations with family together, and for me, I appreciate your service and dedication,” Madden said to Mitchell, prior to presenting him a plaque.
Carlisle, from Oakland, attended Chico State and worked at the University Police Department as a community service officer with Keeney. He later graduated from the Butte College Law Enforcement Academy in 1996 and began his career with the Chico Police Department.
Carlisle mentored more than 30 officers in training through the years, and was also honored with the Medal of Courage along with a received a MADD award.
Carlisle also traveled with his family in 2017 to Washington D.C. during the same National Police Week to honor his father, Paul Carlisle, a fallen officer with the Oakland Police Department.
Paul Carlisle was working as a patrol officer in 1976 when he stopped a man and was shot, leaving him paralyzed. He died in 2015 at age 70, however, after an autopsy and thorough study of his medical records, the coroner’s office ruled his death a homicide and directly attributed it to the gunshot wound, a finding that made it a line of duty death, the East Bay Times reported.
A longtime detective, Madden said Carlisle had a “tenacity” and “would stop at no end” to solve a case. Madden recalled an instance where they served a search warrant at a home related to a burglary case, and were looking for a wedding ring. After scouring the house top to bottom, Madden said Carlisle found a container full of flour tucked away, dumped it out and uncovered the ring.
“That was detective Carlisle in my eyes,” Madden said.
Carlisle said he enjoyed his time with the department and believes it is “moving in the right direction.”
“It’s good to see new blood at the top and things turning around,” Carlisle said.