By Steven Stilt
Two members of the Centralia Police Department officially received promotions on Monday. Trent Timmons, previously a sergeant with the department, was sworn in as a lieutenant prior to the Centralia City Council’s regular meeting, and school resource officer John Hinkel took the oath of office as a new sergeant. The promotions follow the departure of Lieutenant Jamie James, who retired from the Centralia PD in late April.
Timmons has served with the Centralia Police Department since 2013, having previously worked for the Wamac and Central City police departments and the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. He was promoted to sergeant in 2019. Hinkel began his law enforcement career in 2015 with the Central City Police Department and was hired by Centralia PD in 2021.
Police Chief Christopher Locke says Timmons and Hinkel were both worthy candidates to move up within the department.
“Trent Timmons has certainly, as a sergeant, demonstrated some excellent leadership capabilities and really taken charges of some projects. He’s done a great job and we look forward to him continuing that momentum in the years to come. John’s a school resource officer, puts his heart and soul into that and really runs some programs over there that I think are innovative, that he’s done for the city schools, and I know he’s excited to tackle his new role and put some of that innovation and ideas into his new role as a sergeant.”
John Hinkel (left) is sworn in as a sergeant with the Centralia Police Department on Monday. Photo by Steven Stilt.
The Centralia City Council recognized James’ career during its regular meeting. James had served with the Centralia Police Department since October 2000, and Locke says he was a valued member of the department and will be missed.
“Jamie, of course, it’s going to be some huge shoes to fill with him leaving. He had a lot of experience. He certainly had a niche and a desire to reduce the prevalence of illegal substances in the city, and it’s going to be hard to replace those years of experience, but we’re going to make that happen in some form or fashion because that is obviously one of the major problems for our city, the prevalence of illegal substances.”
With the loss of James and the promotions of Timmons and Hinkel, the Centralia Police Department is seeking to hire a new officer. Locke says applications for new officers will be taken through May 24 and testing will take place on June 8.
