No officer in the Pine Bluff Police Department had been promoted to captain since 2018, according to Denise Richardson.
Now the chief, Richardson is that former captain who wanted to restore the role as part of restructuring in the department. Four captains, five lieutenants and seven sergeants received promotions during a pinning ceremony Thursday night at the Pine Bluff Convention Center.
While the PBPD has seen changes in chiefs and deputy chiefs in recent years, administration changes along with the effects of covid-19 played a part in the delay in testing for the other three ranks, Richardson said.
“They hadn’t had an opportunity to sit down, show us what they can do, go through the test, go through the process and be considered for a promotion,” she said. “I thought it was really important to be paid for the work they’ve been doing.” Richardson added the restructuring would keep the PBPD from being too heavy or too light in any area.
“We also had a lot of people retire,” Richardson explained. “We’ve had some people be fired. We had some people move on to other departments, and some of those people were ranking, so those positions have been open since then and we just had not had an opportunity to fill them.” The four officers promoted to captain are Samuel Atkinson, Donna Fratesi, Marcus Smith and Jason Howard.
Fratesi, who has served in the PBPD for 28 years, needed a few moments to take her lieutenant pin off so state police Sgt. Kim Fontaine could place the captain’s pin on her.
“Pine Bluff PD’s in my heart,” Fratesi said. “I’ve been here 28 years. I’ve lived around the area. Pine Bluff in itself means a lot to me. My position is more of an administrative position. Traffic and fleet is the area I’ve always been in, and I think I’m going to stay in that area. Safety and the people are my main concern, so that’s my goal to assist in any way in that area, but also the goals the chief looks forward to accomplishing, I want to assist her in any way I can.” New lieutenants are Brett Talley, Jeremy Brown, DeShawn Bennett, Travis Goforth and Steven Ruck-er. New sergeants include Chrisanthia Kendrick, Keith Banks, Helen Irby, Jacob Howard, Charles Clark Jr., Chris Wieland and Corey Wilfong.
“It means a lot,” said Banks, most recently a detective. “All the hard work we’ve done shows it pays off.” Banks said his goal is to make the PBPD and the city better and help it return to what he calls its glory days.
“I was always encouraged to become more of a formal leader,” he said. “I just decided to take that step to become more of a formal leader and just keep leading the troops. I’ve already been in a leadership position, so I guess this time, I just get paid for it.” Sergeants are the PBPD’s first line of defense and take care of all officers, Richardson said. Lieutenants are mid-level, and captains are command officers, she explained.
“What I mean by command officers is that they’re in the room when we make the hard decisions,” she said. “Their input is demanded. They have to hold people accountable, and they are sort of in between administration and people who are on the street. So, the captains are really on the street. Even though it’s an administrative position, they will not be sitting at a desk. They’re all fluid and they will keep us grounded, because a lot of times, when you get in those top offices, you can actually lose touch with what’s going on in the street, what’s going on with your people.” Captains are also expected to help inform the public about new policies and initiatives, Richardson explained.
“A lot of people will complain that we don’t have the right supervisors on the street,” she said. “Now we do, and that’s what this was all about.”
From left, Chrisanthia Kendrick, Keith Banks, Helen Irby, Jacob Howard, Charles Clark Jr., Chris Wieland and Corey Wilfong are promoted to sergeants in the Pine Bluff Police Department. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)I.C. Murrell
Donna Fratesi (right) removes her lieutenant's pin as she is promoted to captain in the Pine Bluff Police Department. Pinning Fratesi is Arkansas State Police Sgt. Kim Fontaine. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)I.C. Murrell
Maranda Banks pins her husband Keith Banks as he is promoted to sergeant in the Pine Bluff Police Department during a ceremony Thursday at the Pine Bluff Convention Center. (Pine Bluff Commercial/I.C. Murrell)I.C. Murrell