Moscow police wear mark of distinction

MOSCOW - As part of its celebration of 125 years of service, the Moscow Police Department has crafted commemorative shields for officers, detectives, non-sworn employees and department retirees.

Among the commemorative shields is a reproduction of an original worn by Moscow's first police chief, William J. Blacker, in 1892. It reads "Special Police," a reference to a time early in the department's history when police officers were appointed by the city's residents.

Capt. Roger Lanier said he took a picture of the badge on Blacker's chest from a black-and white photo of Blacker inside a display in the MPD hall as a model for the special shields.

"We started (Blacker's badge) as the nucleus of our design," Lanier said. "And we had to have Special Police on there because we were the special police. ... I can see all the history in it and that was the intent - bringing that original badge Blacker wore 125 years forward."

Around Blacker's bronze badge is the silver shield design worn by today's Moscow officers.

Lanier said after completing a similar project for the 150th anniversary of the Lewiston Police Department, he proposed the commemorative shields to Moscow Police Chief James Fry. He said a committee of seven employees throughout the department assisted in the design.

Those officers who purchased a special shield, at a cost of $95, have the option of wearing them on duty or tucking them away and continuing to wear their current one.

Lanier said he will probably sport his for history's sake.

"In the future I can say I wore that badge as a Moscow police officer," Lanier said. "A badge is a very important thing to an officer; it signifies who you are, the agency you are with and it represents the bond between the police department and the citizens of the public."

In many cases, the shields likely are a possession that will last longer than those who purchased them.

"It could be a family heirloom one day, and if not it could be a piece of history at the Moscow Police Department," Lanier said.

Detective Will Krasselt said after seeing the shield in person he will be ordering his own.

"When you see something on a piece of paper it's hard to know what it's going to look like," Krasselt said. "They turned out really nice."

While Krasselt won't have his on Jan. 22 - when the new shields roll out to be worn for the remainder of 2018 - it won't affect him much. He said he might have to tuck his away "and keep it in nice condition."

Commemorative coins are distributed each year within the department, but this year's coin features Blacker's badge on one side, and a color-modified Moscow Police Department patch on the other.

Lanier said it was difficult to dig up the history of the department.

"We struggled to find a lot of information," he said.

Krasselt, who was a reserve with the department for the 100-year anniversary in 1992, said he doesn't recall any type of celebration for the anniversary.

"I don't know if anybody knew about it," he said.

In the future, the commemorative shields will help tell a little of the department's past.

"If you're a history guy - and I am - it's kind of cool to have a piece of history," Lanier said. "The public can't go buy these. They are very specific to the Moscow Police Department."

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Babcock may be contacted at jbabcock@lmtribune.com or at (509) 339-3423.