COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – A former Mendota resident has been selected as the Officer of the Year for the Colorado Springs, Colo., Police Department for 2021.

Randy Blackburn, son of the late Ed and Rita Blackburn, and Val Fishbach of Compton, was chosen for the honor from among over 700 employees on the police force at the department’s annual award ceremony on Jan. 26. He is a 1977 graduate of Mendota High School. His sisters are Barb Weber and Monica Dewey, both of Mendota.

Officer Blackburn has worked for the Colorado Springs Police Department for over 22 years. He is currently assigned as the Shift One Traffic Officer in the Sand Creek Division. His primary duty is to investigate traffic crashes in the Sand Creek Division, but that does not begin to tell the story of his dedication to the community and his fellow officers.

It is common for Blackburn to respond to other divisions to assist with crash investigations and for him to hold several reports while he responds to other crashes to free up patrol officers to respond to other calls. He takes on the additional duty in teaching new officers how to investigate traffic crashes and he mentors all officers on all patrol shifts in their investigations. He does all of this while he investigates more traffic crashes than any other officer in the department.

Officer Blackburn has been on the Major Crash Team for eight years and is the most senior member of the team. In that time, he has never missed a call out. He often volunteers to cover on call responsibilities for his teammates and is known as a “go-to guy.” Officer Blackburn helps morale with his sense of humor and calmness. Although not assigned as a detective on the team, he has always been willing to help the detectives with their investigations. He has greatly contributed to the development of the curriculum to train the department with the new traffic crash form implemented in 2021.

Officer Blackburn also organizes and teaches LIDAR operation to patrol officers. This traffic enforcement tool assists law enforcement with speed enforcement and regulation. He also coordinated and taught LIDAR operation for local Air Force personnel.

The Mendota native also takes a proactive approach to traffic safety by deploying the speed trailer and speed patches throughout the year. He deployed these speed monitoring tools over 40 times in 2021. He follows this up by conducting traffic enforcement in areas that are deemed to pose a danger to the community. In his “spare time,” Officer Blackburn also handles traffic complaints, conducts school zone enforcement, works with officers assigned to the red-light camera program to locate and cite violators, and assists with maintaining vehicle-based equipment.

Office Blackburn is an experienced officer who goes above and beyond to perform his job at an excellent level. He is the ultimate team player, putting the community, the mission and his team’s needs in front of his own. He exemplifies Police Chief Niski’s principles of humility, honor, excellence and responsiveness.