Police, fire chiefs sworn in

Fort Scott City Clerk Diane Clay swears in Fort Scott Fire Chief Paul Ballou (left) and Fort Scott Police Chief Ron Puterbaugh on Wednesday morning. Ballou took over as fire chief in November, and Puterbaugh's first day as police Chief was Wednesday. Both men were hired to fill a position vacated by former Fort Scott Public Safety Director Jeff Davis. After Davis resigned from public safety director in October to become the fire chief in the city of Topeka, city officials decided to split the public safety director's duties into two separate positions. (Rayma Silvers/Tribune photo)

In a special ceremony at Fort Scott City Hall, Ron Puterbaugh pledged to protect the citizens of Fort Scott and uphold the laws recorded in both the state and national constitutions.

At 9 a.m. Wednesday, Fort Scott City Clerk Diane Clay swore Puterbaugh in as the new chief of the Fort Scott Police Department. Puterbaugh, a 27-year law enforcement veteran, was hired in December to fill the empty police chief position vacated by former Public Safety Director Jeff Davis in October.

Puterbaugh's first day on the job gave him an opportunity to meet some of the citizens in the community, providing him with an occasion to create relationships that will help the community in the long run, he said.

"It's going great," Puterbaugh said. "Basically, the first day there is a lot of paperwork for the city. You go out to meet some of the community leaders and figure out who is who so we can work together to make this a safe place to live, work and play."

According to Puterbaugh, who retired in January as a captain with the Ottawa Police department, his first act as police chief will be to examine the police department and ascertain any future changes that may need to take place.

"Short-term I will evaluate where we are at with the department and where we need to be," Puterbaugh said. "We will forge on from there to be a beacon in the community that the city people can be proud of and know that we are here to help in time of need. We want people to know they can call on us for what they need."

According to Fort Scott Human Resources Director Bob Johnson, who had been filling in as interim police chief, Puterbaugh will be a good asset to the local law enforcement department. Although several candidates were interviewed for the police chief position, Puterbaugh was the best qualified for the job, Johnson said.

"He was the best one out of all the applicants," he said. "He (Puterbaugh) has the potential to take the department to the next level."

Because Puterbaugh has been in law enforcement for nearly 30 years and has worked his way up from a police officer to police captain, he will be able to offer insight to the local department, Johnson said.

"He started out as a cop on the street," Johnson said. "You can't do that and not learn a lot. He brings that experience to the department. His experience will be a benefit to growing the department."

Fort Scott Police Lt. Travis Shelton said he is excited about what Puterbaugh will offer the local department.

"We welcome his leadership," Shelton said. "He's got a lot of experieince, and we're looking forward to his new ideas."

Johnson said the officers who are presently employed by the city are some of the best the department has retained for quite some time. With Puterbaugh's ability to teach the officers new strategies, the future of the local department is very promising.

"We're just glad to have him here," Johnson said. "I personally think he'll do a good job. This is one of the best departments we have had. He'll take them (officers) places I couldn't (as interim police chief)."

Fort Scott Fire Chief Paul Ballou was also sworn in by Clay during the special ceremony. Ballou's first day as fire chief was Nov. 24.