‘Great pride in this agency’: Several Evans police officers recognized at city council meeting

As many across the U.S. continue to hold anti-law enforcement sentiments in recent years, the Evans police chief feels fortunate to live in a community where they can celebrate the department's work.

Chief Rick Brandt kicked off the Evans City Council meeting Tuesday by recognizing the officers tasked with protecting and serving the Evans community every day. Awards included the Chief's Citation, Officer of the Year and the Medal of Valor.

"It gives me an opportunity to take great pride in this agency," Brandt said. "It gives me an opportunity to show off the amazing work that the officers who serve the citizens of Evans do every single day."

Brandt, going on his 16th year as chief, said an "anti-law enforcement spin" has circulated the media, only highlighting negative actions of police officers nationwide. Sometimes critical coverage is warranted, he said, but the negative coverage is frequently unwarranted.

"That constant barrage of negativity takes a toll on us all," he said. "It's very difficult to come to work every day with that positive attitude because there's this sense, nationally, of this anti-police rhetoric."

Despite the negative coverage of police nationally, Evans is a community that largely supports its police force. Brandt finds it especially rewarding to repay the men and women for their service through awards, such as the ones handed out to several officers on Tuesday night.

Brandt opened up his presentations by awarding retired Master Police Officer Shawn Holmes a shadow box of all the badges that he wore in his various positions since 2000. Holmes retired in 2022 after serving the department for 22 years.

Holmes began his career as an Evans animal control code officer in 1997. By 2000, he was sworn in as a police officer at the department.

Holmes served in numerous roles including patrol training officer and detective, before attaining master officer status. He was awarded a Purple Heart in 2009 after a suspect hit him with his vehicle, which caused significant physical injury.

During his 22 years of service, Holmes developed respected relationships with judges, attorneys, other law enforcement officers and the public he served — his proudest accomplishment, according to Brandt.

"He was viewed as a mentor and friend in the agency," Brandt said. "With his retirement, we lost a significant resource of institutional knowledge and a true leader."

As the police force said goodbye to an outstanding officer, Brandt gladly swore in two additional officers: Ethan Ediger and Justin Barleen. Ethan's father, Todd Ediger, a fellow Evans detective, had the opportunity to proudly pin a badge onto his son's uniform.

Officer Grant Yount won Officer of the Year, which is selected by peers at the department. Yount started his law enforcement career in 2017 at the Evans Police Department, quickly making a strong impression, Brant said.

Yount came to the department eager to serve, learn and share his previous law enforcement experience. His sergeant said "he quickly matured as an officer and became the backbone of this agency."

Yount served as a less-than-lethal arms instructor, completely changing the training by bringing in new ideas, according to Brandt. Yount then became a firearms instructor — an accomplishment for an officer at his young age. In 2022, he trained six new hires.

"He's passionate about what he does, he's passionate about the agency, he's passionate about the officers he works with and he's passionate about the community he serves," Brandt said.

Brandt described Yount as a leader who shares what he knows and learns with everyone around him. He's worn many hats since joining the department, including serving as a field evidence technician.

"We recognize his maturity and his level of excellence early on," Brandt said. "He's really taken on, voluntarily, a great deal of responsibility well beyond what his 40-hour work week is."

Brandt awarded the Medal of Valor, the highest award, to six officers: Commander Dan Ranous, Lt. Gabe Riemer, Sgt. Jon Trahan, Master Officer Luis Pacheco and Officers Luis Garcia and Jesus Ramirez.

This past April, the officers responded to the 4300 block of 37th Street, where an emotionally distraught man had a handgun. The police worked to deescalate to a peaceful resolution by giving verbal commands for him to drop his weapon. Throughout the process of keeping him in the police's perimeter and talking him down from using his weapon, the man kept pointing his gun at the officers, according to police.

The response lasted for an hour. Police eventually deployed a less-than-lethal shotgun that fired rubber rounds, but it had no effect.

Eventually, officers determined they had no choice but to fire a rifle at the man, who continued to point his gun at the police until he was shot. He was later pronounced dead.

In July, Weld District Attorney Michael Rourke cleared the Evans officer who fired the rifle.

Though the outcome wasn't what officers wanted, Brandt said, the men did everything right during their response to the call by acting passionately, heroically and with great restraint.

"The amount of restraint these officers used was commendable," Brandt said. "These officers went well above the call of duty on this call. Our community should be proud of how they handled themselves."

Trahan, along with Sgt. Joe Gabriel, Sgt. Jason Schissler, Sgt. Brett Stone, Master Officer Brad Rodriguez, Master Officer Joe Kauffman, Master Officer Jason Peppas, Officer Teresa McClatchey, Officer Troy McDaniel and Officer Brandon Martin also received the Chief's Citation.

Through the award, the chief recognizes officers who did an extraordinary job on a case. In September 2020, several officers began working on a case about a homicide at the Rodeway Inn.

In the early morning of Sept. 18, 2020, Evans police responded to reports of shots fired at the hotel. Officers found a man who suffered from gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Brandt called the officer's initial response, including rounding up witnesses and locating the suspect, 31-year-old Joseph Gonzales Jr., extraordinary work. The following day, police arrested Gonzales in a room at the hotel.

The next phase included detectives successfully getting a confession out of the suspect. After the confession, police executed a search warrant, finding evidence including the murder weapon and forensic proof.

Detectives then worked to put a case together with the Weld County District Attorney's Office.

After two years of dedication to the case, a jury convicted Gonzales of first-degree murder in November for shooting and killing the man at an Evans motel in September 2020. A Weld judge sentenced him to life in prison without parole at the Crowley County Correctional Facility.

"Every officer who worked on this was instrumental to the successful conclusion and prosecution of this case," Brandt said.

Mayor Mark Clark concluded the awards by thanking the officers for serving the community. He called the Evans police force the finest officers in the state.

"No matter what, realize we have your back, and we stand by you 100%," Clark said.

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