Police Personnel

Code of Ethics

 AS A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER, my fundamental duty is to serve mankind;
to safeguard lives and property; to protect the innocent against deception,
the weak against oppression or intimidation, and the peaceful against violence or disorder;
and to respect the Constitutional rights of all people to liberty, equality, and justice.

  • Matthew Kalnins

    Chief of Police

    Date of Hire: 04/10/2006
    Promoted to Sergeant: 06/28/2022
    Promoted to Deputy Chief:  2/14/2023
    Appointed as Interim Chief of Police 07/23/2024
    Appointed as Chief of Police 08/13/2024

    Chief Kalnins is originally from Oregon where he graduated from Oregon High School in 2001.  He was employed as a Correctional Officer with the Ogle County Sheriff’s Department before joining the Oregon Police Department.  He graduated the University of Illinois Police Training Institute.  He served as SRO (school resource officer) before being promoted to Sergeant in 2022.  Chief Kalnins is our control tactics instructor, Taser instructor, a member of the ILEAS Mobile Field Force, and a certified Field Training Officer.  Chief Kalnins organizes our participation in community relations programs such as National Night Out, Polar Plunge, Shop-with-a-Cop, First Responder Appreciation Day, etc.

  • Mary Elliott

    Administrative Assistant

    Date of Hire: 08/11/1997

    Mary is our Administrative Assistant. She has numerous tasks that she performs for the public. From records keeping, to billing, ordinance violation tracking, and many other things. She does a great job keeping everything running smoothly.

     

  • Greg Spencer

    Patrol Officer

    Date of Hire: 02/11/2020

    Officer Spencer came to the Oregon Police Department after previously serving with police departments in Illinois and Wisconsin. Officer Spencer is currently assigned as a patrol officer. Officer Spencer is tasked with ordinance enforcement and overseeing our vehicle maintenance.  Officer Spencer currently serves in the US Air Force Reserves.

  • Zach McKean

    Patrol Officer

    Date of Hire: 04/14/2020

    Officer McKean worked in the Ogle County Jail and as an Ogle County Deputy for several years before joining the Oregon Police Department on 4/14/2020.  Officer McKean is certified in advanced roadside impaired driving.  Officer McKean is a certified firearms instructor.

  • Tim Brechon

    School Resource Officer

    Date of Hire:  04/26/2022

    Officer Brechon is from Oregon and came as a lateral transfer from the Byron Police Department where he served many years as a Sergeant.  Officer Brechon is currently the school resource officer for the Oregon School District.  Officer Brechon is a member of the Ogle County Emergency Response Team.  Officer Brechon brings many years of experience to the Oregon Police Department.

  • Terry Lester

    Patrol Officer

    Date of Hire:  01/02/2023

    Officer Terry Lester comes to us as a lateral applicant from the Amboy Police Department where he served almost 15 years.  Officer Lester is certified as a CIT (Crisis Intervention Team) Officer.

  • Eric Higby

    Patrol Officer

    Date of Hire: 07/25/23

    Officer Higby comes to us as a lateral applicant from the Rochelle Police Department where he retired as Chief of Police after serving 27 years.  Officer Higby has a bachelors degree in Law Enforcement Administration from Western Illinois University, graduated from the FBI National Academy, and completed Police Staff and Command school.

  • Taylor Buckwalter

    Patrol Officer

    Date of Hire: 8/27/2024

    Taylor has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Platteville in Criminal Justice. Taylor attended the Sauk Valley Community College Police Academy for 16 weeks starting in September and will graduate on December 19th. She will begin the Field Training Program.

  • Breanna Wakeland

    Patrol Officer

    Date of hire: November 25, 2024

    Breanna Wakeland will be graduating from the SVCC Police Academy on December 19th and will begin the Field Training program. Breanna transferred to Oregon from the Aledo Police Department.

  • Josh Cofield

    Police Cadet

    Josh will begin the 16-week training program at the Sauk Valley Community College Police Academy in January 2025.

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  • Joseph Brooks

    Chief of Police - Resigned

    Date of Hire: 05/20/2002

    Date Appointed to Chief:  09/27/2022
    Date of Separation: 06/25/2024

    Joe Brooks was appointed as Chief of Police by City Manager Darin DeHaan and swore in on 09/27/2022 by Mayor Williams, after having served with the Oregon Police Department for 20 years. He graduated from the University of Illinois Police Training Institute number one in his class.  He has previously held the ranks of K9, Corporal, Sergeant and Lieutenant. Chief Brooks is a Certified Field Training Officer, commercial motor vehicle Officer, and crime scene investigator.  Chief Brooks is a veteran of the US Army National Guard and served 18 months in Operation Iraqi Freedom.  Chief Brooks previously served as the Oregon Police Departments first K-9 Officer.  Chief Brooks completed classes at Kishwaukee Community College to obtain his level B2 fluency in Spanish with a 4.0 gpa.

  • Randy Cropp

    Lieutenant - Retired

    Date of Hire: 01/10/2000

    Promoted to Lieutenant: 8/25/2020
    Retirement Date: 7/1/2022 (Thank you for your years of service)!

    Lieutenant Cropp joined the Oregon Police Department in January of 2000 after previously serving with the Freeport Police Department.  Lieutenant Cropp is a veteran of the US Army and served in the Persian Gulf War.

  • Shawn Melville

    Chief of Police -Retired

    Date of Hire: 07/01/1998

    Appointment Date: 03/31/2020 – Chief of Police (Thank you for your years of service)!

    Retired Date:  10/03/2022

    Shawn Melville was appointed as Chief of Police by Mayor Ken Williams on 3/31/2020, after having served with the Oregon Police Department for 22 years. He previously held the ranks of Detective, Sergeant and Lieutenant.

  • Darin DeHaan

    Chief of Police - Internal Transfer to City Manager

    Date of Hire: 10/14/1996
    Appointment Date as Chief of Police: 10/2005
    Internal Transfer to City Administrator Date:  3/31/2020
    03/31/2020 Hired as Oregon’s first City Administrator.
    05/09/2023: Hired as City Manager

    Previously held the ranks of Corporal, Sergeant, Detective and Lieutenant.

  • Thomas Miller

    Chief of Police - Retired

    After Tom graduated High School, he went on to become an active community member of the City of Oregon.  He proudly served 13 years with the Oregon volunteer Fire Department.  He was an auxiliary Police Officer from 1974-1976. He became the first Oregon officer to attend and graduate from the University of Illinois Police Training Academy in Springfield while working as a fulltime Police Officer for the City of Oregon.  He was promoted to Sergeant in 1982, and to Chief of Police in 1985 where he proudly served the community until his retirement in June of 2005. During his years of service as a Police Chief, he was elected President of the Illinois Northwest Chief of Police Association in 1986.

    Before serving two consecutive terms as Oregon City Councilman from January 2007 through December 2014, he was awarded Citizen of the Year in 2006.