Outstanding Law Enforcement Officers Recognized for DWI Enforcement

Nov 06, 2025 0

Across various jurisdictions, law enforcement officers are dedicated to ensuring public safety by diligently enforcing Driving While Intoxicated (DWI) laws. Their efforts in apprehending and processing DWI offenders play a crucial role in preventing accidents and saving lives. In 2024, numerous officers were recognized for their outstanding service in DWI enforcement. Here are some of their stories:

Exceptional Dedication to Public Safety

Sergeant Ryan Zettel (Outstanding Service)

In 2024, Sergeant Ryan Zettel of the White Earth Police Department showcased exceptional dedication to public safety by apprehending and processing 49 DWI offenses. Despite the challenges of supervising, patrolling, and responding to calls of the expansive 1,300+ square-mile White Earth Reservation, Sergeant Zettel maintained a strong commitment to keeping the roadways safe.

Officer Erik Jax (Outstanding Service)

In 2024, Officer Erik Jax of the White Earth Police Department demonstrated remarkable commitment to public safety by apprehending and processing 39 DWI offenses. While navigating the demands of patrolling and answering calls of the 1,300+ square-mile White Earth Reservation, at times by himself, Officer Jax consistently prioritized the safety of the community.

Officer Nathanael Peters (Outstanding Service)

Officer Peters had a total of 54 DWI’s in 2024, leading the Brainerd Police Department and all other departments in Crow Wing County. Officer Peters strives to provide a safer community by saving lives. How many lives are saved is impossible to calculate due to these drivers being removed from the roadway before causing a life-changing crash.

Officer Bryce Johnson (Outstanding Service)

Officer Johnson had a total of 43 DWI’s in 2024, which is the second highest within the Brainerd Police Department and all other departments in Crow Wing County. Officer Johnson is a young officer who has recognized early in his career the importance of alcohol and drug impairment enforcement.

Read also: The Life of Chad Everett Harris

Deputy Kale Karstens (Outstanding Service)

In 2024, Deputy Karstens excelled in DWI enforcement for McLeod County. He was responsible for the largest total of DWI arrests by an officer in McLeod County: 58 total DWI arrests (22 alcohol related arrests and 36 drug related arrests). In 2024, he completed 44 DREs related to drug driving arrests.

Officer Chad Streiff (Outstanding Service)

Officer Streiff epitomizes the utmost in passion and drive for DWI enforcement and realizes the importance of training up the next group of dedicated enforcers.

These officers exemplify the dedication and commitment required to combat impaired driving and ensure safer communities.

MADD Vision Awards

Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) recognizes officers who demonstrate a vision for safer roadways through their enforcement efforts and community engagement.

Officer Chase Gallinger (MADD Vision)

Officer Gallinger strives to keep the roadways safe, making 179 DUI arrests in 2024, with 136 of the arrests being for drug-impaired driving. As a Field Training Officer, Officer Gallinger trained four Officers in 2024 who collectively made 47 DUI arrests. Officer Gallinger is an SFST instructor who is always willing to assist officers with any questions.

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Trooper Brianna Cline (MADD Vision)

In 2024, Trooper Brianna Cline arrested 92 impaired drivers-the most of any east metro trooper in 2024. Beyond enforcement, Trooper Cline has taken on a vital role as a mentor and informal leader for the new troopers in the district. Whether it’s teaching DWI detections skills, guiding troopers thorough challenging situations or events, or leading by example with her professionalism and work ethic, Trooper Cline’s impact extends far beyond her own enforcement efforts.

Trooper Gustavo Culbeaux

In 2024 Trooper Culbeaux removed 222 impaired drivers from Minnesota roadways. This was the 6th consecutive year that Trooper Culbeaux arrested the most impaired drivers of any Trooper in Minnesota, earning him the Eagle Squadron award.

The dedication of these officers goes beyond simply making arrests; they actively contribute to creating a culture of safety and awareness.

Top DUI Enforcer Pins

Law enforcement officers are often recognized with pins based on the number of DUI arrests they make. The levels of recognition are as follows:

Bronze: 25-49 DUI Arrests
Silver: 50-99 DUI Arrests
Gold: 100-149 DUI Arrests
Red Medallion: 150+ DUI Arrests

Below is a list of officers who achieved Bronze level:

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Deputy Ahmed Kadhim- Rock County Sheriff’s Office 11
Officer Derrick Barr- Oakdale Police Department 20
Officer Samuel Lieberman- South Lake Police Department 20
Deputy Nils Hansen- Carlton County Sheriff’s Office 20
Officer Dominic Shelley- Oak Park Heights Police Department 22
Trooper Aaron Bommersbach- MN State Patrol (3200) 25
Deputy Casey DeLacey- Hubbard County Sheriff’s Office 25
Lieutenant John Fritz- MN State Patrol (2500) 25
Officer Jordan Host- Brainerd Police Department 25
Deputy Ethan Schwinghammer- Stearns County Sheriff’s Office 25
Deputy Kevin Urke- Hubbard County Sheriff’s Office 25
Trooper Benjamin Bauer- MN State Patrol (2900) 26
Trooper Zachary Caldwell- MN State Patrol (2500) 26
Trooper Matthew Carlson- MN State Patrol (2600) 26
Officer Michael Pfeilsticker- Lake City Police Department 26
Officer Kevin Schletty- Bloomington Police Department 26
Officer Aaron Schmidt- South St. Paul Police Department 26
Trooper Mark Vande Steeg- MN State Patrol (2500) 26
Officer Josh Wicker- Bemidji Police Department 26
Officer Karl Zabinski- Minneapolis Park Police 27
Trooper Garrett Erickson- MN State Patrol (2500) 27
Deputy Christian Howse- Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office 27
Trooper Dylan Kriese- MN State Patrol (2600) 27
Officer Andrew Mattson- Woodbury Police Department 27
Sheriff Kevin Schnorenberg- Blue Earth County Sheriff’s Office 27
Trooper Matthew Wooding- MN State Patrol (2100) 27
Deputy Kila Bazoff- Wright County Sheriff’s Office 28
Officer Jack Deininger- St. Paul Police Department 28
Trooper Zachery Fay- MN State Patrol (2100) 28
Trooper Kevin Kuebler- MN State Patrol (2500) 28
Sergeant Allen Mekash- OtterTail County Sheriff’s Office 29
Sergeant Tony Petrie- Hubbard County Sheriff’s Office 28
Officer Chandler Ross- Red Lake Department of Public Safety 28
Officer Austin Sable- Minneapolis Police Department 28
Officer Joe Super- New Brighton Police Department 28
Trooper Mohamed Bah- MN State Patrol (2400) 29
Officer Brandon Comiskey- Stillwater Police Department 29
Trooper Jamie Gilchrist- MN State Patrol (2700) 29
Trooper Every Gyi- MN State Patrol (2400) 29
Trooper Christian Lemon- MN State Patrol (2400) 29
Trooper Nicole Marshik- MN State Patrol (2600) 29
Officer Isaiah Moore- St Louis Park Police Department 29
Deputy Joseph Olufson- Wright County Sheriff’s Office 29
Officer Jacob Prince- Edina Police Department 29
Deputy Patrick Swenson- Washington County Sheriff’s Department 29
Deputy Chris Burk- Douglas County Sheriff’s Department 30
Trooper Alejandro Dominguez- MN State Patrol (2500) 30
Officer Travis Larson- Edina Police Department 30
Trooper Nathan Elzen- MN State Patrol (2200) 31
Trooper Kelvin Harris- MN State Patrol (2500) 31
Officer Colin Johnson- Mankato Police Department 31
Officer Ryan Mjolsness- St. Cloud Police Department 31
Officer Anthony Ohlendorf- Mounds View Police Department 31
Officer Timothy VanGrinsven- Forest Lake Police Department 31
Trooper Jacob Christopherson- MN State Patrol (2700) 32
Officer Mitch Fitzgerald- Rochester Police Department 32
Officer Derek Gregorich- Cambridge Police Department 32
Sergeant Dominic Hamre- Red Lake Department of Public Safety 32
Trooper Tyler Lay- MN State Patrol (2500) 32
Officer Ashley Moran- Grand Rapids Police Department 32
Trooper Andrew Schommer- MN State Patrol (2500) 32
Deputy Justin Thesing- Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office 32
Officer Travis Gleason- Brainerd Police Department 33
Officer Ethan Hofschulte- Winona Police Department 33
Trooper James Noxon- MN State Patrol (2400) 33
Deputy Cole Thoma- Stearns County Sheriff’s Office 33
Trooper Alexander Wright- MN State Patrol (2500) 33
Deputy Nick Moberg- Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office 34
Officer Cory Luckow- Alexandria Police Department 35
Officer Johnathan Rasmussen- Edina Police Department 35
Deputy Matt Sobczak- St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office 35
Trooper Deanna Wayne- MN State Patrol (2500) 35
Officer Nicholas Wegner- Woodbury Police Department 35
Deputy Frank Hintz- Washington County Sheriff’s Department 36
Officer Marco Miranda- Glenco Police Department 36
Officer Kenneth Olson- Bagley Police Department 36
Trooper Michael Wren- MN State Patrol (2400) 36
Trooper Luke Dohman- MN State Patrol (2400) 37
Trooper Trevor Dostal- MN State Patrol (2400) 37
Officer Will Forberg- Shakopee Police Department 37
Trooper Justin Mathes- MN State Patrol (2500) 37
Trooper Alexander Tokar- MN State Patrol (2600) 37
Officer Aryk Arndt- Inver Grove Heights Police Department 38
Trooper Carter Pavek- MN State Patrol (2400) 38
Officer Jacob Charlton- Rochester Police Department 39
Officer Erik Jax- White Earth Police Department 39
Sergeant Andrew Krey- Hubbard County Sheriff’s Office 39
Trooper Isaac Stephens- MN State Patrol (2500) 39
Trooper Elijah Allen- MN State Patrol (3100) 40
Trooper Sean Bruns- MN State Patrol (2200) 40
Trooper Michael Stillings- MN State Patrol (2500) 40
Officer John Thomas- New Brighton Police Department 40
Officer Connor Collette- Baxter Police Department 42
Officer Ezra Moore- Minneapolis Police Department 42
Officer Nate Birkner- Anoka Police Department 43
Officer Bryce Johnson- Brainerd Police Department 43
Officer Jennah Justen- Blaine Police Department 43
Trooper Michael Peterson- MN State Patrol (2600) 43
Officer Lance Ulrich- Rochester Police Department 43
Officer Jonathon Wiseman- Shakopee Police Department 44
Trooper Reese Benda- MN State Patrol (3100) 46
Officer Audra Rawlings- St. Paul Police Department 47
Trooper Brett Hoy- MN State Patrol (2400) 49
Deputy Ryan Zettel- White Earth Police Department 49

Below is a list of officers who achieved Silver level:

Trooper Chase Jensen- MN State Patrol (3100) 50
Officer John Miller- Woodbury Police Department 50
Officer Adam Casanova- Baxter Police Department 52
Trooper Derrik Hoy- MN State Patrol (2400) 53
Officer Evan Wimmer- Winona Police Department 53
Trooper Alexander Anderson- MN State Patrol (3200) 54
Officer Nathanael Peters- Brainerd Police Department 54
Trooper Dalton Miller- MN State Patrol (2100) 55
Officer Tommy Satele- Blaine Police Department 55
Trooper Alexander Vukelich- MN State Patrol (2100) 55
Officer Lane West- White Earth Police Department 55
Officer Leonard Gerten- Minneapolis Police Department 56
Officer Jack Milbauer- Woodbury Police Department 57
Deputy Kale Karstens- McLeod County Sheriff’s Office 58
Officer Malachi Slaughter- St. Paul Police Department 58
Officer Neal Warren- Bemidji Police Department 58
Trooper Vincent Wren- MN State Patrol (2400) 58
Deputy John Davis- Olmsted County Sheriff’s Office 59
Trooper Zachary Borchardt- MN State Patrol (2700) 60
Officer Jacob Dub- St. Paul Police Department 60
Officer Jonathan Coello- South St. Paul Police Department 61
Officer Jeremy Ellison- St. Paul Police Department 62
Deputy Jon Stracek- Carlton County Sheriff’s Office 62
Officer Brian Butler- Minneapolis Police Department 66
Sergeant Cory Johnson- MN State Patrol (2400) 67
Trooper Nicholas Swanson- MN State Patrol (2100) 68
Officer Jake Nelson- South Lake Police Department 72
Trooper Justin Renken- MN State Patrol (2500) 73
Trooper Darin Vossen- MN State Patrol (2600) 73
Officer Tim Korinta- Bemidji Police Department 77
Trooper Nicholas Kammerer- MN State Patrol (2500) 78
Deputy Mike Lacore- Mower County Sheriff’s Office 78
Officer Matthew Boogren- St. Paul Police Department 79

These awards highlight the significant impact law enforcement officers have on preventing impaired driving.

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Community Initiatives and Awareness

Beyond law enforcement, community initiatives play a vital role in raising awareness about the dangers of impaired driving.

Mark Upton, Attorney at Law, and Rita Mattson are giving a DUI presentation at Washington and Gulf Breeze high schools on Chad Mattson’s conviction of DUI and manslaughter. They will share Chad’s message and movement for teens to eliminate impaired driving, and discuss his determination to prevent someone from making the same fatal mistake he made.

These initiatives aim to educate young people about the severe consequences of driving under the influence and prevent future tragedies.

Award Level	DUI Arrests
Bronze	25-49
Silver	50-99
Gold	100-149
Red Medallion	150+