Promotion approved in West Lafayette Police Department

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Lt. Sanford Swanson Jr. becomes Sgt. Swanson starting Saturday after Tuesday’s West Lafayette Board of Public Works and Safety

Swanson, who was promoted to lieutenant at the end of 2023, requested the demotion for personal reasons, asking to return to sergeant of patrol, West Lafayette Police Chief Troy Harris said.

The board approved the promotion of Sgt. FN Lutz III to fill the vacant lieutenant position in patrol division.

“Sgt. Lutz was the next name on the list provided to me by the police merit commission,” Harris said.

Lutz, a West Lafayette native, is an eight-year veteran of the department.

Updated police policies

At Harris' request, the board approved several updated police policies as part of the reaccreditation process as part of the Indiana Law Enforcement Commission.

There are significant changes to some of the policies, Harris said, answering the board members' questions.

Board member Michelle Dearing asked if any of the new policies require the department to change its practices or require additional training.

“There are several items in there,” Harris said. “When you go through reaccreditation there are some higher standards that you have to follow to comply with the regulations.”

One policy change that Harris discussed was how officers interact with juveniles.

“Every time we bring in a juvenile, it’ll be logged in and logged out and have to be in a certain location,” Harris said. “A lot of little things like that, nothing major.”

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: West Lafayette Police Department promotes FN Lutz to lieutenant