- The Madison Police Department is mourning the loss of one of its own, Lieutenant June Groehler, who unexpectedly passed away on June 7 after falling ill.
Groehler will be laid to rest following a full honor guard ceremony Wednesday afternoon.
Groehler, an 18-year veteran of the Madison Police Department, will be greatly missed by the department she was so proud of and by many in the community who she personally touched, Chief Mike Koval wrote in his blog.
"June embodied all of MPD's leadership values but will likely be most remembered for her caring and compassion for fellow officers and members of the community and for her commitment to serve," Koval wrote.
Groehler joined the Madison Police Department in May 2000 and started in patrol services. She was assigned to the North, Central and East Districts, working mainly on the afternoon shift.
She always had a creative mind and took initiative early on as an officer – for example, Groehler created the first databases that organized mental health and neighborhood resource information for patrol officers, Koval wrote.
For more go to WKOW: http://www.wkow.com/story/38416548/2018/06/13/madison-police-mourn-loss-of-lieutenant-after-unexpected-illness
More from the chief's blog:
In 2007, June was promoted to Sergeant and was first assigned to Patrol Services in the South District and then to Professional Standards and Internal Affairs. It was during her time as a Sergeant that June pushed MPD's outreach efforts and experience in technology and cybercrime. June created a "Cyber-Detective" program for middle school aged youth, developed interactive videos on cyber safety that were shared nationwide, formed the Cyber Safety Committee that brought local, state and federal agencies together to discuss and strategize around cybercrime trends and founded the Council for Cyber Safety for Children. June continued to instruct classes on cyber safety, social networking and cyber bullying for many years.
In 2011, June was promoted to Lieutenant and was assigned to the South District where she served as the Detective Lieutenant until 2013. In 2013, June transitioned to the South District Patrol Lieutenant role. June supervised the South District's Patrol Sergeants and Detectives, Neighborhood Officers, Neighborhood Resource Officer, Educational Resource Officer and Community Policing Team. She recently led community involved assessments in the Arbor Hills and Leopold neighborhoods, coordinated police staffing for multiple events like the recent Ironman Wisconsin 70.3 triathlon, regularly monitored calls for service trends and somehow still managed to routinely check in with the people she supervised and make sure they were supported.
June was dedicated to developing, mentoring and training fellow officers but also members of the community. June was a Field Training Officer and Field Training Sergeant for the MPD and helped shape the careers of many MPD officers. She also served as an instructor at Madison College, ITT Technical College and Upper Iowa University. June was also very committed in bringing more women to the field of policing. She served proudly as a former President and active member of the Wisconsin Association of Women Police.
Over her 18-year career, June received 50 written internal recognitions or citizen compliments for her work. She also received MPD's "Outstanding Service Award" in 2010 and again in 2012. In 2012, she also received the "Innovation in American Government Award" from Harvard University for her work with the MPD Cyber Safety Committee. She also was awarded Wisconsin Technical Colleges "Excellence in Teaching Award" in 2007.
Lt. June Groehler loved her community and took great pride in her ability to serve. There is now a large void at the South District and MPD overall. June's legacy will live on in our ranks and in the communities she impacted.