The Dalles Police Department welcomes new chief

It was in The Dalles that he participated in the Cadet program, which allows college students and young adults interested in a career in law enforcement to work for the police department.

After finishing his degree, Worthy has spent more than 27 years as an Oregon State Trooper, five of which were spent here in The Dalles as well.

“I really like the community,” Worthy told the Columbia Gorge News. “Its familiar to me, it’s a good size in that it’s not small, and yet it’s not huge, and you can get to know people. I got to know the officers of this department … the state troopers and sheriff’s deputies at the time, and it was just such a good collaborative relationship that it seemed like a good fit and I was happy to be assigned here.”

Last month, Worthy finished his master’s degree in Law Enforcement and Public Safety Leadership at the University of San Diego. “It was a lot of work,” he said, “but it was very refreshing to see new ideas and interact with the law enforcement professionals from all over the United States. All of them bring various perspectives from their different communities.”

When asked about his philosophy on policing, Worthy said his number one priority is community. “[As a State Trooper] I knew the people who worked at the drive thrus, who worked the register at the convenience store when you went to get a cup of coffee at night, the city police officers, the sheriff’s deputies, the district attorneys and the judges. It is very possible there to engage with your community,” he said. “We are not in hurry to put everyone in jail, we can’t be … but we are in a hurry to solve community problems. And we’re in a hurry to help victims, and make sure this community stays as safe as it can be.”

While he is still getting to know the community as Chief, Worthy shared that one major course of action for the department is to collaborate or continuing to collaborate with “regional anchors” such as the local hospital and Columbia Gorge Community College, which provides resources not only to citizens of The Dalles but people all over the region. The Dalles Area Chamber of Commerce, which represents the business community, is another important relationship to maintain because “public safety is economic development.”

It is also important to Worthy to continue the collaborative relationships with community resources such as The Mid-Columbia Center for Living, who in the past has provided guidance and training for officers to safely handle crises concerning mental health, as well as HAVEN, who can provide support in the event of domestic violence.

“We want to make sure that the right resource is attending to the correct problem, and it might not always be law enforcement,” he said. “We might be a first responder, but we may not be the ultimate resolution. The officers are very well advised and practiced in contacting mental health [or other] professionals when they need to.”

Like the community, Worthy is still getting to know the department he has recently taken over, but has created goals in a few areas, one being to update the currently used technology.

“I recognize and acknowledge the challenge and expense those projects can bring to an agency, and I also recognize this department could improve in terms of its use of technology in some areas,” he said. “Technology moves fast, and we need to keep pace with it. Not because we need new or shiny things, but because of the efficiency and accountability that those tools add for us.”

One benefit to installing software such as newer Microsoft Office applications is that officers would be able to implement tools such as voice-to-text, which could save significant time when drafting reports. “It has the potential for returning time to the agency where they can be out in the community keeping it safe, rather than typing out a report which is what we do now,” Worthy explained.

Another goal he has in mind is to eventually earn an accreditation for The Dalles Police Department. “I want to ensure that the department is functioning at the absolutely optimal level.” Worthy said. “The formalized process ensures that any ‘blind spots’ that we (or I) may have are covered. Accredited agencies enjoy less risk than others may and we can demonstrate to our community our commitment to excellence through this process, as well as potential new officer candidates.”

To achieve accreditation, the department would need to go through a process in which outside experts evaluate and grade department policies, procedures and work products on several different components. According to Worthy, the process could take up to two years. “I think that we’re well poised to achieve accreditation,” he said, “but we have to go through the work first, and we have to prove it to the accreditation evaluators, and so we are going to launch that process sometime this fall.”

When asked if he had anything he would like to share with his new community, Worthy said that the police department has their back. “We’re always here, they can always call us,” he said. “With wisdom, and compassion, we are going to serve the community every single day [and] with our community partners — of course we can’t do it alone — we want to keep this community as safe as possible every day of the year, no matter what the time.”