Milan PD names top cops

Milan Police recognized for their dedication to duty

By Logan Watson

The Milan Police Department recognized four of their own last Tuesday night for going above and beyond the call of duty in protecting and serving their community. Milan Police Chief Bobby Sellers and his officers chose to honor Sergeant Nick Glenn, Lieutenant Kelvin Whitney, Patrolman Jeff Gordon and Dispatcher Mandy Edmiston at their annual Christmas dinner for their contributions to the safety of the city.
Sgt. Glenn, who currently serves as the School Resource Officer at Milan High School, was chosen as Officer of the Year for his service to the school and the rest of the community.
“It is a blessing to have such a great family at home and to be a part of a great team of men and women that show up for work every day to make a positive difference in our city,” said Sgt. Glenn. “I’m thankful to follow the leadership of Chief Sellers, who sets the standard of how important the relationship between the community and the police really is. It is a true honor to be recognized by my peers and I thank them for choosing me.”
Lieutenant Whitney was chosen as the MPD’s Traffic Enforcement Officer of the Year for issuing 162 of the MPD’s 1,617 citations, as well as his efforts as the department’s K9 handler. Officer Gordon was named the DUI Enforcement Officer of the Year, making a staggering 31 percent of the MPD’s impaired driving arrests. Mandy Edmiston was named Dispatcher of the Year.
“All of these men and women are very deserving of their awards,” said Chief Sellers. “They all work really hard to keep our city, our schools and our streets safe. Milan is very fortunate to have them.”
Three of Milan’s boys in blue were also recognized by the Tennessee Highway Safety Office earlier this month for their outstanding performance in keeping the streets of Milan safe. Lieutenant Whitney,  Officer Gordon and Patrolman Brian Hutson were each honored by THSO Director Victor Donoho on Tuesday, December 13, for their outstanding work in different areas of traffic enforcement.
The THSO presented awards to officers of the West Tennessee Region in six areas: Child Passenger Safety, Impaired Driving, Speed Enforcement, Seatbelt Enforcement, Distracted Driving and “Beyond the Traffic Stop”. Officers from Milan took home two of the six awards, as well as the West Tennessee Region’s Officer of Year Award.
Lt. Whitney was presented with the Speed Enforcement Award for his diligence on patrol. According to Police Chief Bobby Sellers, Lt. Whitney issued 10 percent of the MPD’s speeding citations for the year, responded to six percent of the department’s calls and made six percent of the MPD’s total arrests. In addition to his patrol duties, Lt. Whitney is also the MPD’s K9 handler and the supervisor of the evening shift patrol.
Officer Hutson, 2015’s West Tennessee Officer of the Year, was presented with the Seatbelt Enforcement Award for issuing 25 percent of the MPD’s seatbelt violations and also responded to eight percent of the department’s calls, issued 10 percent of the total citations and made six percent of the MPD’s arrests.
Patrolman Jeff Gordon was chosen as the THSO West Tennessee Region’s Officer of the Year. Gordon made nine impaired driving arrests between January and November. Ptl. Gordon also issued the second most speeding citations and third most seatbelt citations in the department. In addition to his fine work in traffic enforcement, Officer Gordon also responded to eight percent of the MPD’s calls, completed 8.5 percent of the incident reports and made 11 percent of the department’s total arrests.TOP COPS – Officers of the MPS presented awards to the best their department had to offer last Tuesday night. Award winners were (from left): Patrolman Jeff Gordon – DUI Enforcement, Lt. Kelvin Whitney – Traffic Enforcement, Sgt. Nick Glenn – Officer of the Year and Mandy Edmiston – Dispatcher of the Year. Photo by Logan Watson.