HELENA — The Montana Highway Patrol welcomed 12 new troopers to the force on Friday March 1, 2024.
Family, friends and loved ones were on hand to help with their new badge on their uniforms.
The troopers will serve in communities ranging from Eastern Montana communities like Malta and Glasgow to Butte and Bozeman in Southwest Montana.
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen led them in the oath where they promised to uphold MHP’s values of service, integrity and respect.
“It feels fantastic. We know we need troopers. Montana’s population is going up, our traffic crime is going up, our highway crime is going up. Crime in general in Montana is going up and we need dedicated highway patrol troopers. So, we're really lucky to be a state that were still able to be recruiting pretty successfully in law enforcement,” Knudsen said.
Along with adding new troopers, eight current ones were promoted within the ranks.
The 12 new troopers — who were part of the 78th MHP Advanced Academy — spent 24 weeks going through and intense training schedule.
Name Initial Duty Station / Hometown
- Anthony D. Carroll Butte / Butte, MT
- Ronaldo Chavez Wolf Point / Missoula, MT
- Alexander D. Crandall Bozeman / Shevlin, MN
- Roberto "Daniel" Erekson Miles City / Billings, MT
- Manti D. Jeffs Choteau / Colorado City, AZ
- Thomas G. Kachler Glasgow / Newfoundland, NJ
- Jerad R. O'Dell Butte / Overton, NV
- Gamal "James" Selim Whitehall / Jacksonville, FL
- James T. Taylor Bozeman / San Luis Obispo, CA
- Dylan W. Walls Big Timber / Bremerton, WA
- Josiah "Joe" Wamsley Drummond / Helena, MT
- Brett L. Westford Malta / Cuter, WA
The Montana Highway Patrol is currently recruiting for trooper positions through March 20, 2024.
For more information on the recruitment process and to submit an application, click here.
