The Pleasant Prairie Town Board established the Pleasant Prairie Police Department in 1971. The department began with a five-person part-time police force, which phased out the previous three-person Pleasant Prairie Township Constables. Leonard Clark, who had previously served as a Pleasant Prairie constable for 18-years, became the township Police Chief. The newly formed municipal police force held similar duties to constables, enforcing township ordinances, and wore badges and arm patches to identify them as Pleasant Prairie Police.
For several years the department was staffed by part-time officers and did not provide 24-hour coverage. It wasn’t until 1980 that Pleasant Prairie appointed its first full-time Police Chief, Raymond Gram, and hired its first full-time officers. By 1981 the Pleasant Prairie Police Department was a 24-hour operation with four full-time officers, including Chief Gram, supplemented with part-time officers. After incorporating as a Village in 1989, the department’s size grew dramatically from seven full-time township officers.
April 30, 2021, marked 50 years for the Pleasant Prairie Police Department. The Police Department now consists of 36 full-time officers patrolling an area covering approximately 33 square miles with 20,000 residents and is lead by Police Chief David Smetana. Chief Smetana’s priority is addressing the department’s need for critical incident preparedness. The amount of training offered in the police department has increased in recent years; evidence collection, accident investigation, human trafficking, animal neglect, impaired driving, and death investigation are just a few Pleasant Prairie Officers’ training opportunities.
Over the last 50 years, many dedicated officers have provided outstanding public service to Pleasant Prairie citizens, serving the community in multiple capacities. Duties in the Police Department have grown to include Detective Bureau, S.W.A.T., K-9 and Motorcycle Units, Hostage Negotiation, and more. New technologies are used, like 360° HD in-squad camera systems and body cameras, to help protect officers and gather evidence. Pleasant Prairie Police’s mission is to be the model of excellence in policing by building partnerships with our community and being professional, competent, and compassionate.