Joan Koehne, jkoehne@wolfrivermedia.com
Brad Olsen
An Oconto County sheriff’s deputy with 16 years of law enforcement experience has been named police chief in Oconto Falls.
The City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved the hire of Brad Olsen, of Bonduel, subject to a satisfactory psychological evaluation. He replaces Mike Roberts, who retired June 3 after 35 years with the department.
Olsen, 38, is scheduled to begin his new job Oct. 20.
Olsen grew up in Shawano. His parents, Marty and Jerry, owned the Bamboo Bar on Shawano Lake for over 30 years. According to Olsen, years of bartending, waiting tables and occasionally breaking up fights helped him learn how to interact with people, which proves helpful in his law enforcement work.
After years of having a squad car for an “office,” Olsen said it will take time to get accustomed to an office at City Hall and adjust to his new administrative duties.
“However, I do not want to be a chief who’s in the office all the time. I want to be out on the road and in the schools,” he said.
The personnel committee interviewed three finalists: Kurt Kostuch, Patrick Runge and Olsen. Two other candidates were scheduled for interviews but were no-shows. Twelve people applied for the position.
Sgt. Corey Rank, the only member of the department to apply for chief, had been scheduled for an interview but withdrew his application. Rank was promoted to sergeant and named officer in charge of the department after Roberts’ retirement.
Alderman Kevin Rusch, committee chairman, said Olsen was one of two strong candidates for the position, and it was the consensus of the committee to recommend him for the job.
Olsen earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville and worked as a summer intern for the Oconto County Sheriff’s Department. After graduation, he worked as a community service employee for the city of Shawano. In 2000, was hired by Oconto County.
Olsen is a certified instructor for firearms, Tasers and emergency vehicle operation. From 2002-2010, he was a K-9 handler, working with two dogs.
According to Rusch, the direction of the department will be left to Olsen.
“We’ve expressed a couple thoughts of what we’d like to see and didn’t really pinpoint any problem areas we’re aware of,” Rusch said.
Olsen said he is looking forward to leading the department, which has four full-time officers and three part-timers.
“I think it will be a good fit. I’m excited to get started,” Olsen said, then paused before adding, “It also makes it very easy walking into a department with very good officers. I’ve worked with all of them.”
He said he became interested in police work when he was kid, after Shawano Police Officer Gary Burr visited his grade school.
“Boy, I thought he was a movie star!” Olsen recalled. “I had never seen an officer in uniform, except on TV and in the movies. I was mesmerized by it.”
It was simple things like classroom visits and bike safety lessons that left an impression on Olsen, who said he’d like to make a similar impact on today’s youth.
“I’d like to make a good presence known at the schools, even myself. I’d like to spend more time working around the schools, getting to know some of the kids so they feel comfortable talking to our officers,” he said.
He’d also like the department to run anti-drug programs in the schools.
“I think it’s very important to get that drug awareness at a young age,” he said.
Olsen is married, with two teenage sons. The family lives in Bonduel and has plans to build a home in Gillett. For about 12 years, Olsen lived south of Oconto Falls and is familiar with the community.