The Bellingham Police Department’s Command Staff consists of:
Chief Rebecca Mertzig began her career with the Snohomish County Sheriff’s Office in 2004 and reached the rank of Lieutenant in 2020. Her experiences include patrol, special investigations, school resource officer, civil disturbance unit, Basic Law Enforcement Academy (BLEA) TAC Officer, honor guard, peer support, and first level and middle management leadership. She both served and supervised the Office of Neighborhoods which is a co-response unit pairing deputies with social workers to encourage engagement in services. She served as the Police Chief for the City of Stanwood and the Honor Guard Commander. Chief Mertzig has 18 years of law enforcement experience and was named Deputy of the Year in 2010. Chief Mertzig has her bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Eastern Washington University.
Deputy Chief Don Almer oversees Operations.
Deputy Chief David Crass oversees Services.
Lieutenant Chad Cristelli oversees the Investigation Units.
Lieutenant Andria Fountain oversees the Patrol Division’s Gold Team.
Lieutenant Jay Hart oversees the Office of Professional Responsibility.
Lieutenant Keith Johnson oversees the Patrol Division’s Blue Team.
Lieutenant Jason Monson oversees Administrative Services.
Lieutenant Claudia Murphy oversees Special Operations and is the Public Information Officer.
Records Manager Alexandra Copeland oversees the Records Bureau.
Deputy Director Alysn Everbeck oversees the WhatComm 911 Dispatch Center.
BPD Information Technology Manager Christine Paulson oversees BPD IT services.
Administrative Coordinator Renee Firos manages the many duties associated with this command staff.
This staff consists of a unique group of people who are responsible for smaller units within the police department. Each staff member is responsible for the day to day operations and vitality of that unit.
Chief Mertzig and the command staff are proud of our mission statement of “Committed to Community.” Bellingham is a wonderful city with a police department which is committed to its community from the command staff to the patrol officers.
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