Photo 1: From left, Covington Police Chief Brian Valenti, Officers Jeff Young and Marcus Jordan and Mayor Joe Meyer.
Photo 2: Chief Valenti presents the badges.
Photo 3: The swearing in.
Two veteran officers sworn in
COVINGTON, Ky. – Two men were sworn in as Covington Police officers late this morning, but to call them “new” would be misleading.
One has 26 years’ experience as an officer, all in Covington. The other has almost 14 years and, counting his years as a Corrections officer, 16 years in public safety.
“It’s not very often that we get to welcome over 40 years’ experience to the Department,” Covington Police Chief Brian Valenti said. “I’m looking forward to getting them on the street.”
One officer, Marcus Jordan, started as a Covington patrol officer in 1997 and retired as an assistant police chief earlier this year. He will serve via a one-year contract under a special “returnee” program authorized by state law.
Jordan filled a wide variety of roles during his career in Covington, including as commander of the Patrol Bureau and as an Internal Affairs investigator. He served in the U.S. Army Reserve for nearly 20 years and has a Bachelor’s degree in English from Northern Kentucky University and a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Cincinnati.
The other officer, Jeff Young, comes to Covington from the Elsmere Police Department, where he served for a little over a year. Prior to that, he served 12½ years at the Independence Police Department, where he was a SWAT team negotiator, sergeant, and a member of the Criminal Investigations Bureau.
Young also worked for 2½ years as a probation and parole officer for the Kentucky Department of Corrections and has a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Thomas More University.
Jordan and Young will complete an abbreviated training program and join Covington’s Patrol Bureau immediately afterward, Valenti said after presenting them with their new badges.
The pair were sworn in by Mayor Joe Meyer during a brief ceremony at Covington City Hall. As is his custom, Mayor Meyer pledged City leaders’ support, praised Chief Valenti and his top staff, and reminded the officers how committed the Department is to maintaining a good rapport with the public.
“Community relations is very important to us,” Mayor Meyer said.
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