Letter from Chief Funston

It is my pleasure and honor to serve as your Chief of Police.  These are definitely trying times around our nation, our state, and here in the City of Rifle.  As people are recovering from a worldwide pandemic, we are all working towards finding our new normal.  The restrictions placed on communities as a whole caused many unforeseen consequences that we are continuing to work through.  Political unrest, division amongst Americans, and circumstances creating distrust of government hit many communities hard.  The Rifle Police Department did not escape these past few years unscathed.  We have faced staffing shortages due to sickness at times, but more often it has been difficult to find quality men and women willing to serve in law enforcement.   This is a national problem that all law enforcement executives are seeking creative solutions.  Changes in legislation and decriminalization of certain crimes can have a very adverse effect on communities, leaving more criminals free to re-offend.  

I am very proud of the employees working for our agency.  Despite shortages, canceled training opportunities, lack of available resources, policy, and legislative adjustments, the team here forged on and provided professional police services to the citizens of Rifle.  We are working very hard to recruit good people to fill our vacancies and provide a great working environment to retain those good employees.  Training opportunities are opening back up allowing officers to continue increasing their knowledge base and providing swifter more efficient policing strategies.   We cannot fix the consequences of a worldwide pandemic or fix the political divisiveness we see daily; however, by treating each citizen with dignity and respect we can change our own world one contact at a time.  

It is our mission “To promote the peace, safety, and well-being of our community through interaction, education, and enforcement of the law.”  The Rifle Police Department is committed to this mission while working in collaboration with our community to make this the safest place to live, work, and play.