The City of Fort Wright has announced several promotions within the Fort Wright Police Department.
Effective Friday, Captain Jonathan Colwell assumed the role of chief of police replacing Chief Ed Butler who was recently hired as the director of security for Thomas More University. In addition to Chief Colwell’s promotion, Sergeant Rob Griffin is being promoted to captain, and Officer Nick VonHandorf is being promoted to sergeant.
Incoming Chief Colwell is a 12-year veteran of the Fort Wright Police Department who has previously served as a Patrol Officer, Sergeant, Captain, and Interim Chief of Police for the City. Before joining the Fort Wright Police Department Chief Colwell served for ten years at the Kenton County Detention Center where he rose to the rank of Captain.
Incoming Captain Griffin is a nine-year veteran of the Fort Wright Police Department. He has served the city as both a Patrol Officer and Sergeant. Prior to joining the city, he served at Louisville Metro Corrections and at the Kenton County Detention Center where he rose to the rank of Lieutenant.
Incoming Sergeant VonHandorf is a nine-year veteran of Law Enforcement. He has served a total of six years with the City of Fort Wright and served in the City of Bellevue.
Chief Butler, whose last day with the city was Friday, has served the Police Chief since March of 2020. In total he has almost 33 years of public sector experience having previously served for the Kenton County Police Department where he retired as Police Chief at the end of 2011. After his career with the Kenton County Police Chief, Chief Butler served in various roles to include Executive Director of the Kenton County Emergency Communications Center, City Administrator for the City of Fort Wright, Chief Deputy for the Kenton County Detention Center, and finally Chief of Police for the City of Fort Wright.
The promotions of Colwell, Griffin, and VonHandorf are the culmination of a succession plan put in place by Mayor David Hatter. Hatter, City Council, CAO Jill Bailey, and Chief Butler worked cooperatively on a vision to develop the talent within the department over the past four years. The goal when Chief Butler was hired in 2020 was to position the department in a manner that allowed personnel to grow and develop.
City of Fort Wright