New officers graduate from academy, join Lakeport Police Department
- Lake County News reports
- Posted On
LAKEPORT, Calif. — The Lakeport Police Department welcomed two new officers following their graduation from the Santa Rosa Junior College Public Safety Training Center on Thursday.
Officers Marissa Onate and Alexis Pizano were subsequently sworn into office by Chief Brad Rasmussen, surrounded by city staff and family members who pinned their new badges on them.
Onate and Pizano, both 24 years old, were raised in Lake County and attended local schools. Both are Hispanic and speak English and Spanish.
After high school, Onate attended Santa Rosa Junior College receiving two associate degrees, one in administration of justice, and then attended Sacramento State University where she received a bachelor’s degree in administration of justice. While at these colleges Onate also worked for the campus police departments.
Before she was hired by LPD as a police trainee in July 2022, Onate served as a substitute teacher at Lower Lake High School.
During the graduation ceremonies, Onate was recognized as being tied for second place in student scenario testing.
Pizano, who immigrated to the United States at 2 years old, was a member of the local workforce in Lakeport before being hired by LPD as a police trainee in July of this year.
He also was raising his young daughter while attending the police academy.
The hiring of these officers, who went through extensive testing, background process and pre-academic agency training over the past 18 months, is part of the Lakeport City Council’s policy implementation on police retention and recruitment for our community.
They are also part of the city’s and police department’s goals of hiring to make the police department a reflection of the community it serves.
There were 43 total graduates from 16 agencies in the north coast region at this week’s academy graduation.
Some outstanding facts about this academy class are that it was No. 2 academically out of the 42 other current academy classes in California. No one failed from the class, 12 were veterans, 14 speak two languages, 18 have bachelor's degrees, five have master’s degrees and 15 were female — the most ever in a Santa Rosa Junior College Public Safety Training Center academy.
City staff attending the graduation and supporting the new officers were Rasmussen, City Manager Kevin Ingram, Lt. Dale Stoebe, Sgt. Sarah Hardisty, records and evidence Supervisor Tammy Prather, and officers Shaun Johnson, Juan Altamirano and Todd Freitas.
To learn more about the cadet hiring program, contact the Lakeport Police Department at 707-263-5491.