Berea Police Department

👻 Hopefully the weather holds off, Halloween is still a go tonight!! 🎃

We can't wait to see you tonight!
Berea Parks and Recreation 23rd annual
Halloween at the Park
Free
Berea City Park
Thursday October 31st
6:00pm-8:00pm
local vendors will hand out candy to trick or treaters
For more information call 986-9402
Inflatables, fire truck rides and a professional photo booth!
(Photo shows information listed above and bats, jack-o-lanterns and spooky trees)

Hey Berea, Chief Hays here! I wanted to recognize one of our Captains for his outstanding performance recently. Our very own patrol Captain, Casey Botkin recently received the International Association of Chiefs of Police 40 under 40 award! This award recognizes 40 outstanding leaders around the world each year.

Captain Botkin was recognized for his work on our wellness plan, which he took the initiative on several months ago. The wellness plan helps to address PTSD, burnout, coping with critical incidents, and hopefully even aids in su***de prevention. We are currently analyzing the results of the wellness program, as we are still in the early stages of its implementation, but all indications are that the program is a benefit to officers' mental health.

We are all so very proud of Casey's accomplishments and his drive to improve the mental health and wellness of our employees. Captain Botkin identified a problem within our profession, researched what other departments were doing, and implemented a plan for how to address the problem.

The wellness plan is changing the culture at the Berea Police Department with regards to mental health and speaking with mental health professionals and counselors. Please join me in congratulating Captain Casey Botkin for initiating that change, and for receiving the IACP 40 under 40 award!

Well done, Casey!

We are hiring CERTIFIED officers now! If interested, please visit www.bereaky.gov. You can also scan the QR code included in the picture to go straight to our application page.

Deadline to submit your application is Wednesday November 13, at noon.

Our records department will be closed Monday, October 28th. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. The records department will resume normal operation on Tuesday, October 29th.

Send a message to learn more

Please join us in congratulating Detective Jason Varney on his recent graduation from the Kentucky Criminalistics Academy (KCA). KCA is an immersive 400-hour forensics program administered by the Kentucky Department of Criminal Justice Training. The 10-week program trains participants in areas such as; crime scene processing, use of unmanned aerial platforms, shooting reconstruction, bloodstain pattern identification, explosive device scene reconstruction, and human remains/ clandestine grave investigations. We are extremely proud of Detective Varney and sincerely appreciate his dedication to continuing his education to better serve the community.

Hey Berea! Please join us in welcoming our newest officer, Joshua Stone! Joshua comes to us with several years of law enforcement experience, including service as a deputy here in Madison County, and also as a deputy in Las Vegas, New Mexico.

We are excited to have Joshua join our family here at the Berea Police Department!

Don’t forget shirts are still available in limited quantities and sizes! These shirts are in support of events such as Christmas With A Cop 2024. Come on by the City Hall and visit us at the Berea Police Department Monday through Thursday 8a-4p🚔

The wait is finally over, Chief Hays has created a new T-shirt design for 2024!! A limited order of shirts have been made to support events such as Christmas With A Cop, so come and get one before they’re all gone.

Adult Small to Adult 2XL for $20!! Visit us at the Berea Police Department Mon-Thurs 8a-4p or at the Spoonbread Festival this weekend. We can’t wait to see you and as always we appreciate your support

Hey everyone, our partners at St. Joseph Berea wanted us to share this with you and invite everyone to come out! There will be City of Berea Police and Fire department representatives there as well.

See y'all there!

We are looking for local businesses!
***ATTENTION LOCAL BUSINESSES***
Berea Parks and Recreation is seeking local businesses to participate in their 23rd annual Halloween at the Park event. It will be held on Thursday, October 31st from 6-8pm at Berea City Park. This is such a great opportunity to advertise to thousands of people while participating in a long-standing community event.
Registration is FREE
All booths will be set up around the lighted portion of the paved walking trail. Businesses will be supplied with one 8-foot table, two chairs & access to one-110 electrical outlet. Pop up tents & other supplies/decorations are the responsibility of the vendor. You do not have to decorate, but we do encourage decorating your booth for a chance to win the “Best Decorated Booth Contest.”
Participating businesses and organizations are asked to provide & hand out pre-packaged candy (expected attendance: 800- 1,000). Participants may also hand out small promotional items. Again, participation is FREE. You are encouraged to dress up for a more festive environment.
If you would like to participate, please contact Berea Parks and Rec. 986-9402. The deadline to register is Tuesday, October 29th.

(Photo shows cartoon ghost with trick or treat bag, and a witch on a broom as well as text above)

The City of Berea, KY Government has collaborated with Cub Scout Pack 516 to be a donation point for hurricane relief supplies. The supplies will be delivered by Pack 516 to those impacted by Helene. The items they are requesting are: Baby wipes, antibacterial wipes, diapers, baby food, batteries, hygiene items, and water. Donations can be made at the rear bay doors of Berea KY Fire Department located at 212 Chestnut Street. Items will be accepted until October 18th.

*****UPDATE*****
Suspects have been identified, thank you all for the shares and help.

BPD is requesting your assistance with identifying these individuals. If you have any information in reference to these subjects please contact Madison County Dispatch (859)624-4776. Case # 24-15042

Please help us in welcoming our newest officer, Hunter McFerron! We are excited to add Hunter to our family here at the Berea Police Department, and we know he's ready to get to work serving our community.

Thank you so much Saint Joseph Berea Hospital for your generosity and this act of kindness. Saint Joseph Berea Hospital collected teddy bears and stuffed animals for our cruisers to pass out to children within our beautiful community. We appreciate their partnership in helping us serve the children of Madison County.

Spoonbread Festival starts today!! Reminder a portion of Jefferson Street is blocked for vehicle traffic starting at about 9am Friday morning(residents in this area can still access their homes). Schedule accordingly your travel plans, we can’t wait to see you all!! The schedule can be located at this website: https://www.bereachamberofcommerce.org/spoonbread-festival/plan-your-visit/

Here is the most recent vendor map for this weekend! Please note it is subject to change!

Limited supply of shirts available to support Christmas With A Cop 2024!!

The wait is finally over, Chief Hays has created a new T-shirt design for 2024!! A limited order of shirts have been made to support events such as Christmas With A Cop, so come and get one before they’re all gone.

Adult Small to Adult 2XL for $20!! Visit us at the Berea Police Department Mon-Thurs 8a-4p or at the Spoonbread Festival this weekend. We can’t wait to see you and as always we appreciate your support

Huge thank you to Walmart for bringing by this scrumptious cake! We appreciate all the sweet treats that were brought in yesterday and today.

⚠️⚠️

Quick Reminder of a traffic impactor this evening! See details in shared post for areas that will be impacted by MSHS Homecoming Parade!

This evening we will be hosting our annual Homecoming Parade! Cars and floats will line up starting at 5pm, and the parade will start at 6pm.

Cars will line up in the library parking lot while floats will line up in the bus loop infront of MSHS/Foley. Here is the route of the parade:

Turn right onto Glades Road from campus.
Turn left at Rash Road
Turn RIGHT at Ellipse Street
Turn RIGHT at Walnut Meadow Road
Turn Right at Glades Road
Turn LEFT on Rash Road onto MSHS athletic complex.

Attached will be a photo of the route highlighted in orange.

We’d like to give a big shoutout to a few community members for bringing us some delicious treats today! Another reason why Berea is the best! Thanks to Craig Loftis State Farm Insurance, Cash Express, Lake’s Funeral Home and more! We appreciate every ounce of support this city provides us!

“Time is passing. Yet, for the United States of America, there will be no forgetting September the 11th. We will remember every rescuer who died in honor. We will remember every family that lives in grief. We will remember the fire and ash, the last phone calls, the funerals of the children.” — George W. Bush

Let’s honor those and never forget the sacrifices that were made, 09/11/01.

We’re aware of the threats being posted on social medias and have investigated them. The most recent online post does not involve any schools within Berea,Ky or Madison County.

We take all threats seriously and will continue to investigate them. This recent post is in reference to counties outside of Kentucky and those departments have been made aware and are currently investigating.

Earlier this morning our school resource officers at Madison Southern investigated a threat involving the possibility of a weapon being taken into the school.

Our officers were able to determine that no weapon was taken into the school and there is no threat to students or faculty.

***UPDATE***
The Kentucky State Police Post 11 London and the Laurel County Sherriff's Office will be having an updated briefing at the Laurel County Sherriff's Office (203 S Broadstreet London, KY) today, September 9th at 3:00PM.