Welcome to the "Virtual" Dickinson PD Museum! Please check back often, as new "exhibits" will be periodically added.
OVERVIEW |
Before Dickinson was organized as a town in 1899, police protection was handled by the county until the residents voted to formalize their village. At that point, Robert Craig became the first, and only, marshal of Dickinson. He and other elected officials served only until the next year, when the voters approved changing the status of Dickinson to a "city". When this occurred, Mayor Dan Manning appointed J.E. McCoul as the first chief of police of Dickinson.
While early police department information is sketchy, some stories have been repeated throughout the generations. One of these comes from a local attorney, Robert Baird (also a former police commissioner). He said that in the early days, much of the street cleaning was done by prisoners who were brought out during the day in chain gangs to do the work. The department itself consisted of usually 2-3 men.
Traffic control was also minimal, and apparently there was little call for it, with the exception of a few signs. One of these was a post in the middle of the intersection at Sims and First Street that reminded drivers that the vehicle to the right had the right-of-way.
In the 1930s, Chief George Nolan moved the police department into the then-new city hall, which was located at 25 First Avenue West. Today, the building houses the Dickinson Fire Department. The police and fire departments shared the building for nearly 50 years. In the building, the police department had three cells and one room. It wasn't until 1982 when construction of the new (and current) combined Law Enforcement Center was complete and the two departments were separate.
Patrol procedures became more refined by the 1940s. The department got its first patrol cars, but still lacked a dispatcher. Instead, a red light was placed atop the old Heaton Lumber Company office building on the southwest corner of Villard and Third Avenue West (the current Sax Motor location). The light was operated by the telephone operators. When they received a call from someone needing the police, they would turn on the red light and the officer would then check with the operator to see what the problem was. Henry Weber recalls, "if you got too far off Villard, you couldn't see it, so you had to hang around Villard."
Most of the police activity of the early years was done similar to that of which is done today; family fights, dog calls, and accidents.
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| Dickinson PD 1949 : Don Hewson, Ted Olson, Joe Faller, Chief Matt Zabel, Pat Lenhardt, Henry Weber |
By the 1940s, the shift schedule was well worked out. The chief
worked the day, one officer worked 3 PM - 11 PM and one officer worked from
11 PM -7 AM. Other officers helped from 7 PM - 3 AM. One of these officers was
the south side officer. This person had his own little "precinct house"; a tiny
square building that sat at the corner of Broadway and Highway 22. The south
officer covered only the south side and had his own red light to watch for when
there were calls.
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| "The Goat" Crime Scene : One of Dickinson's [few] homicide scenes; the Goat Recycling Machine, 2-7-90 |
On February 7th, 1990, a female shot another female near the "goat" recycling machine on the East Business Loop. One female (the suspect) used a .44 Magnum handgun to kill her brother's girlfriend. A comment was made that the family liked the girlfriend more than the daughter, creating a sense of jealousy among the daughter. The daughter is currently serving a sentence in the New England Women's Prison.
On April 17th, 1994, a murder-attempted suicide took place near East Villard. The male suspect and his girlfriend got into an argument. At one point, the girlfriend began writing a suicide note and asked the boyfriend to shoot her. He carried through with her request. The male then turned the gun on himself and attempted suicide, but flinched as he pulled the trigger. As a result, the male shot off the tip of his nose. He is currently serving a sentence in the Bismarck State Penitentiary for homicide.
On January 17th, 1996 one man was murdered by his neighbor after the suspect felt he was having a marital affair with his wife. The charge was reduced to manslaughter and the suspect is serving a 15 year sentence in Bismarck.
Finally, in 2002, another murder-suicide struck Dickinson. This has been the last such incident to date.
The increased oil activity in southwest North Dakota in the late 1970s and early 1980s brought new challenges to the Dickinson Police Department. The population of Dickinson swelled to nearly 23,000 people. The staffing level of the department peaked at an all-time high of 45 officers. Officers of this era remember non-stop calls for service. Many would come to work 3 calls "stacked", or waiting.
In the late 1980s, Chief Paul Bazzano introduced "Community Oriented Policing" to the Dickinson Police Department. This brand of policing is still being used by the department today. During this time, the department encouraged the community to get involved with crime prevention. National Night Out was introduced. Crimestoppers was formed. Neighborhood Watch beats were being established city-wide.
In the early 1990s, a bike patrol unit was formed to patrol the city in a different fashion. An Adopt-a-Cop program was developed, which placed a street officer at a school as "their" officer.
In early 2000 and after the events of 9-11-01, the department established a regional tactical unit. The team is still operational today and continues to advance and adapt with today's ever changing police climate.
The future of the Dickinson Police Department is holding true and strong. Our heritage and history encompasses a philosophy of respect, integrity, service, and courage and providing the citizens with a strong commitment to a community partnership.
Portions of this history blog are courtesy of the "Centennial Roundup 1882-1982" by Janell Cole and Kurt Schweigert.
PAST CHIEFS |
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CHIEF GARY BANYAI (1998 - 2005) Gary Banyai was appointed to chief by the city commission in May of 1998. He was serving as Captain with 22 years of law enforcement experience prior to his promotion.
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CHIEF DUANE WOLF (1992-1998) Duane Wolf served as Chief of Police for nearly 6 1/2 years. Prior to his appointment as chief, Wolf worked his way up within the department, starting as a Patrolman in November of 1960. He was promoted to Sergeant in 1964, Lieutenant in 1969, and Captain in 1989. |
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CHIEF PAUL BAZZANO (1989 -1992) Paul Bazzano has been one of the only police chiefs to be hired "outside" of the department. Before coming to Dickinson, Bazzano worked for the North Dakota Attorney General's office as a special agent for the Drug Enforcement Agency in Fargo. He is a native of Connecticut. |
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CHIEF HENRY WEBER (1987 - 1989) Henry Weber was a career-long officer with the Dickinson Police Department. He began as an officer back in the late 1950's and worked his way up through the ranks. Prior to his promotion to chief, he served as the Captain of operations under Chief Webb. |
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CHIEF ROBERT WEBB (1984 - 1987) Robert Webb took over as police chief in August of 1984. He was an Illinois State Police Sergeant with 26 years of experience in law enforcement before coming to Dickinson. He moved here from Peoria, IL. |
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CHIEF GERALD BARNHART (1963-1969 AND 1972-1984) Gerald Barnhart has been one of the longest serving police chiefs in department history. He served a total of 17 years; from 1963-1969 and 1972-1984. Between 1969 and 1972, Barnhart worked setting up law enforcement training programs at the United Tribes Training Center and at a training center in Glasgow, MT. |
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CHIEF DON EHLI (1969 - 1973) Don Ehli served as an interim chief during the absence of Gerald Barnhart. He was one of the first officers to be appointed as chief by the current system of a civil service board. At the time of his promotion, he was the rank of Sergeant and had been serving the department for 10 years. |
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CHIEF MATT ZABEL (1946 - 1963) Matt Zabel was named chief after moving up to his position after a short time as an officer. Other officers in his tenure included Joe Faller, who later worked for Stark County Sheriff's Department, and Henry Weber, who went on to become a interim chief in the 1980s. |
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CHIEF ALEX WOLF (1942 - 1946) Alex Wolf started his civic career in 1930, when he was elected to the county commission. He served one term lasting until 1934. He then became a deputy sheriff between 1937-1941 under I.W. Gerlich. He was hired as a Dickinson policeman on January 2nd, 1941. Wolf served as a policeman under Chief Cyril Drury for about 9 months until he was appointed Police Magistrate in November of 1941. He became Chief of Police in October 1942. Wolf had 2 officers under his command; Patrolman Joe Kessel and "South Dickinson" Patrolman George Hecker. |
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CHIEF CYRIL DRURY (1937 - 1942) Cyril Drury served as police chief in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Drury served as the chairman of the Stark County Democratic Committee and was the commander of the Matthew Brew Post of the American Legion. He had four officers under his command; Joe Kessel, Jack Cumber, Otis Quinion, and Alex Wolf. During this time, two officers were assigned to work the 1 PM to 10 PM shift and the other two worked the 10 PM to 7 AM shift. The department only had 1 sedan police car. |
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CHIEF GEORGE NOLAN (1925 - 1937) George Nolan was the Chief of Police during much of the 1920s and 1930s, serving a total of 12 years. Nolan was a "buck private" war veteran and fought overseas in France. Prior to his appointment, Nolan was a deputy sheriff with the county. During the era of prohibition, Nolan and his staff were busy dealing with bootleggers and busting illegal breweries. Officers during his tenure included Joe Kessel, Michael Roth, Peter Remmilong, W.E. Littlehales, Dick Schuster, and Ernest Rieche. |
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CHIEF W.L. NICHOL (1919 - 1925) W.L. Nichol served for 5 years as the chief of police. He was the first chief to be appointed by a city "commission". During this time, the job of chief skipped from several people within a years time. George J. Sorber, a prominent farmer and a director in the Farmers' Union, was given the reigns for about 4 months between Chief Hayes and Chief Nichol. |
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CHIEF JERRY HAYES (1918 - 1919) Jerry Hayes served a brief period towards the latter half of the 1910's. He was ultimately voted out of the position by city aldermen for being too lenient on illegal gambling. One of Hayes' officers was named Tom McDonough. McDonough was a notorious nightwatchman known throughout the area. He was a one-armed man who some say was rather fearsome. However, newspaper articles in the Dickinson Press from this time seem to carry almost weekly installments of McDonough's captures. They painted him as an aggressive cop not worried to chase juveniles stealing candy from a hardware story on foot, all the way across town, most time catching them. |
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CHIEF PAT CORBETT (1904 - 1918) Pat Corbett was one of the longest-running Chiefs of Police in department history. He served a total of 14 years with the city. He was previously the first elected Sheriff of Stark County when it was formed in 1884. Corbett was a native of Green Bay, WI and moved to Mandan in the late 1800s. He worked for Northern Pacific Railroad and eventually transferred to Dickinson. He worked another year with NPR before taking the position of sheriff, and later, chief. Frank Wanner and Charles Brislin assisted in policing duties during this time. |
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CHIEF J.E. McCOUL (1900 - 1902) and CHIEF J.M. CARROLL (1902 - 1904) Mayor Dan Manning appointed J.E. McCoul as the first chief of police of Dickinson. During this time, Dickinson hired its first policemen. According to an unconfirmed source, the officer was Frank X. Wanner. Wanner went on to become Stark County Sheriff in the 30's and 40's. McCoul was in his position for only 2 years until J.M. Carroll was appointed as Chief of Police. |
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MARSHAL ROBERT CRAIG (1899-1900) After Dickinson was organized as a town in 1899, Robert Craig became the first marshal. He and other elected/appointed officials served only until the next year, when the voters approved a change over to the status of "city". |
IN MEMORY |
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Theodore C. Wanner Patrolman Theodore "Ted" Wanner died shortly before midnight on July 14th, 1966 when the patrol vehicle he was driving crossed some rail road tracks and struck the side of a box car, killing him instantly. According to the North Dakota Highway Patrol, a Northern Pacific switch engine and box car were traveling north on the south-fork of a Y-turnaround that intersects West Broadway. A train crew member told the NDHP that Wanner appeared to be chasing a speeder. The speeding car crossed the tracks successfully, but Wanner's vehicle struck the box car directly underneath the door, becoming wedged underneath the train, and dragged 27 feet. The suspect continued to flee from the scene. Wanner had just been in contact with another patrol car just moments before the crash. He is believed to have been in the vicinity of the Cargill elevator when his last radio transmission was made. On the following day, police arrested a 33 year old New England man in connection with Wanner's death. He was charged with careless driving, which carried a maximum fine of $100 and 30 days in jail, or both. Wanner was born July 8th, 1937 to Frank and Audina Wanner of Dickinson. He lived with his parents on their farm ten miles southeast of Dickinson until he enlisted in the Navy in 1952 where he served until 1955. He returned to Dickinson where he lived until his death. Wanner married Margaret Stelmachuk of Belfield on February 13th, 1961. He joined the Dickinson Police Department on December 28th, 1961. He was survived by his wife; a 5 year old son Monte; his parents; a brother Edward Wanner; and two sisters Helen (Haag), Fairfield; Martha (Williams), Leveland, Texas. Source: The Dickinson Press |
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Mary Jo Carrington Mary Jo Carrington served on the juvenile relations bureau of the Dickinson Police Department in the late 1970s. She was the first female to qualify for a position within the Dickinson Police Department. Carrington, along with SGT Vaile Pender, ran the bureau for several years off of a federal grant. She developed an "Officer Bill" presentation aimed at first graders in Dickinson and Gladstone. The program stressed that "police officers are your friends". She also provided counseling for juveniles who get involved with their first brush with the law. Carrington determined if juvenile cases would be mandated to court or could stay with the youth bureau. Carrington was born July 22nd, 1946 to Joseph and Mary Huschka in Napoleon. She grew up in Manning, ND and served in the U.S. Women's Air Force. She married David Carrington in Killdeer in 1965. Source: The Dickinson Press |
OPERATIONS |
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Dickinson Police Serve as City's Ambulance Drivers Back in the mid 1950's, the ambulance service was staffed by off-duty
policemen from the Dickinson PD. In total, 10 officers served on the ambulance
service for nearly 20 years. The drivers included Duane Wolf, Henry Weber, Frank Reisinger, Clarence Kolling, Tom Thompson, Jim Rice, George Grossman, Thomas Nass, Darrel Haag, and Pat Lynch. The officers took turns on staffing the ambulance with 2-man crews. All of the drivers were advanced first aid instructors, though they were commonly met on-scene by a doctor. Frank Reisinger recalls that in the 18 years of driving the ambulance, the entire staff never had a single patient die on them enroute to the hospital. |
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Evolution of Shoulder Patches
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Parking Meter Ticket - 1979
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VEHICLES |
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2006 Ford Crown Victoria
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2001 Ford Crown Victoria
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1992 Chevy Van - Crime Prevention
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1992 Chevy Caprice
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1990 Ford Crown Victoria LTD
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1980 Buick LeSabre
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1976 Ford LTD II
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HEADLINERS & SCRAPBOOK |
COPS NAB COUNTERFEITING
RING IN DICKINSON
On February 9th, 1962, several individuals were arrested by the US Secret Service and Dickinson PD after a 5-week-long investigation into a counterfeiting ring. The "hub" of the half-million dollar operation, one of the biggest uncovered in the Upper Midwest, was based right here in Dickinson. The investigation started in Washington state with the arrest of Allen Therriault and Carol Sanders. The two were arrested after attempting to pass another couple's name at a Seattle bank. Sanders was in possession of counterfeit $20 and $100 bills. They "rolled over" and gave the name of a Billings man, Jack Lande.
Lande was arrested in Billings for his connection in the counterfeiting ring. The US Secret Service interviewed him and was told that Bernard Gangl, a former Dickinson resident and 1950 graduate of the Central High School, was the head of the operations. Gangl was residing in Casper, WY at the time. He was arrested a short time later. Secret Service Agents Robert Dowling and Arthur Blake accompanied Gangl to Dickinson, where he showed them the house his ring was using.
The house, which is no longer standing, was located at 746 Aldrich ST. It had been in the Gangl family for many years, but had abandoned in the previous 10 years. The house had no running water, but did have electricity and lights. Paper covered the window, as to disguise the happenings within. Police raided the house and found two of Gangl's associates within. They were arrested without incident.
No furniture or regular house furnishings were located inside. Police did find photography equipment and a stolen printing press from Billings. The ring used a rather crude form of counterfeiting; using the cameras to take a picture of real money, and then duplicating the photo onto the printing press. Several plates for the printing press were located in the house as well as in the dump north of town.
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UPPER LEFT : Bernard Gangl and two of his associates
(left) are arrested after police uncover one of the largest counterfeiting
rings of the Upper Midwest up until that time. Patrolman Don Ehli (right)
looks on. UPPER RIGHT : Dickinson Police escort Gangl and his crew to police cars. In the background is Enger's Motel, which was located near present-day Western Agency on East Villard. CENTER : Patrolman Ted Wanner searches the belongings of Gangl's crew. |
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ABOVE : The exterior of 746 Aldrich Street. The house had been considered vacant for the 10 years prior to the bust. Paper covered the windows to hide the happenings inside. |
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ABOVE : Bedroom of the house used by the counterfeiters. |
SWANSON MOTEL MURDERS
On November 9th 1981, Dickinson was the scene of a grizzly murder. The scene; The Swanson Motel, 746 West Villard. The victims; 53-year-old Priscilla Dinkel and her 7-year-old grand-daughter, Danelle Lietz. Their killer; William Reager. The Swanson murders drew national attention among the law enforcement community, mainly because the case had gone "cold" and a suspect wasn't named for nearly 10 years. That changed in 1991 when a new tool, an "FBI profile", was given to law enforcement and a killer was brought to justice.
Police Chief Chuck Rummel, who in 1981 was a Patrolman, was one of the first called to the motel. Rummel described the murders as eerie. Dinkel was found face down in the office lobby of the motel. Her hands had been bound with an electrical cord and she had suffered a blow to the head by a blunt object. Her granddaugther, Danelle Lietz, was in the office sleeping quarters. Lietz was found unbound on the bed, but evidence suggested she had been tied up at one point. Rummel said that he can still remember what the two were wearing; Dinkel in a blue nightgown and Lietz in Strawberry Shortcake pajamas. To make matters worse, there was evidence suggesting sexual contact was made by the killer between Dinkel and Lietz.
Local police detectives, to include then-Detective (SGT) Rick Bartz, and state BCI detectives worked on the case to develop any leads possible. A list of suspects was on hand, but several crucial pieces of information were missing, making it difficult for investigators to connect the remaining dots. Weeks turned into months, then into years, with no new leads. The case turned cold after nearly 10 years.
In 1991, a city police commissioner stirred interest in the case and asked the new police chief to take another look at it. Chief Paul Bazzano was head of the police department at the time. Rummel, who in 1991 was working as detective, was assigned by Bazzano to review the cold case and develop any leads possible. With the help of the FBI, a suspect "profile" was created and compared to the list of suspects. The FBI profile was a new concept in the early 90's and would prove to be pivotal in naming a suspect in the Swanson murders.
After comparing the list, Rummel named William Reager, a city taxi driver and transient, as the prime suspect. Within days, Rummel and a representative with the state BCI office were enroute to Batesville, Arkansas to interview Reager. During the interview, Rummel noticed many traits of the FBI profile were glaringly obvious in Reager. After hours of interviewing, Reager finally confessed to the murders and gave very vivid details of the murder that only law enforcement and/or the suspect would know. He told Rummel that he wanted to date Dinkel's daughter, but she did not approve of him.
Reager was subsequently arrested and charged with the murders of Priscilla Dinkel and 7-year-old Danelle Lietz. Reager was put on trial for the murders, but died in jail from a heart attack just days before the start.
The Swanson murders are used as case studies for FBI profiles in many criminal justice universities around the nation. This notion has even sparked interest of A&E Television and their series "Cold Case Files". Chief Rummel plans to meet with television executives to tell the story of Priscilla Dinkel and Danelle Lietz and how their killer was finally brought to justice.
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ABOVE : Dickinson's second homicide. On November 9th,
1981, William Reager stangled Priscilla Dinkel, and Dinkel's 7-year-old
grand-daughter, Danelle Lietz. Dinkel was a manager at the Swanson's
Motel, where the murders took place (across the street from present-day
Honda West on West Villard). The case remaind unsolved for nearly 9
years until Reager confessed to the murders. |
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ABOVE : Cass Hewson (left) and Barb McLeod
(right) visit local schools and chat with the students. |
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ABOVE : Newscast of mock car accident - 1994 & 2000 Teen Action Group and DPD. |
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ABOVE : Dickinson PD 1942. |
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ABOVE : Three articles from the Dickinson Press making reference to a natorious DPD officer of the 1910s; Nightwatchman Tom McDonough. |
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ABOVE : A 1927 blurp from the Dickinson Press informing readers of the new city and state traffic laws. |
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ABOVE : One of Dickinson's only armed bank robberies at the Liberty National Bank in the Prarie Hills Mall (3-22-91). Suspect later caught after bragging to friends. The Dickinson Press |




