Coon earns top POST certification
(Photo by MARY MALONE) Sandpoint Police Chief Corey Coon, left, was awarded the Peace Officer Standards and Training Executive Certificate during Wednesday's City Council meeting, presented to him by Idaho POST Division Administrator Victor McCraw, right.
SANDPOINT — It takes an exceptional police chief to earn the Peace Officer Standards and Training Executive Certificate. Sandpoint Police Chief Corey Coon is now among those who has been awarded that distinction.
Coon was recently awarded the certificate, which is the highest awarded to peace officers in the state.
The POST Executive Certificate is not given to officers — it is earned, said Idaho POST Division Administrator Victor McCraw, who presented the certificate to Coon during Wednesday's City Council meeting.
"Not every chief, and not every sheriff, in the state of Idaho is going to get one of these," McCraw said. "So this is a pretty big deal."
It is through hard work, dedication, endurance and perseverance that these certificates are awarded.
What it means, McCraw said, is Coon not only completed all of the minimum POST requirements, he went "over and beyond," furthering his training at the executive level.
"It was humbling to hear his comments last night and then to read all the kind words the community has shared with me," Coon said in an email to the Daily Bee Thursday. "It is an honor and a privilege to be the chief of police for the city of Sandpoint, and to continue to serve and protect."
Coon was hired with Sandpoint Police Department in 1997 and has served as a patrol officer, K-9 handler, school resource officer and lieutenant of investigations before he was appointed as the chief of police in 2013.
Coon is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, Session 259. He graduated summa cum laude from Lewis and Clark State College with a bachelor's degree in justice studies.
He is an active member of the community and can often be found involved in helping with community events and coaching a wide range of youth sports. For his efforts, from giving free rides home on New Year's Eve to hanging flower baskets around town, Coon was named the Greater Sandpoint Chamber of Commerce volunteer of the month in March for his leadership and commitment to the chamber and the community.
Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.