La Salle natives sworn in as new patrol officers

La Salle swore in two new patrol officers for the police department Thursday at City Hall.

Brandon Wilson and Austin Godwin, both La Salle natives, were given their oath by Deputy Clerk Brent Bader surrounded with their friends, families and fellow officers in attendance.

This is the first officer position for both Wilson and Godwin. They said they are looking forward to having a positive influence in their hometown.

“I’m hoping to put a good name out there for law enforcement,” Godwin said. “There is such a negative stigma nowadays around police officers, and we are hoping to change that slowly.”

“I agree with that,” Wilson said. “We want to be a part of the community as much as possible and change the stuff that make people who don’t typically feel comfortable around law enforcement start to feel comfortable and feel like they can rely on us.”

La Salle Police Chief Mike Smudzinski said he was excited to have the pair join the team, as they both have expressed interest in serving their community.

“They are two of the finest I have seen in a while,” he said. “They both are showing a strong desire to become police officers, and I’m very happy to have them on our team.”

Both Wilson and Godwin were motivated by their upbringing to become officers in their community.

“Growing up, both of my parents were in [the Department of Corrections],” Godwin said. “So I learned how to respect law enforcement from a very early age, so I’ve definitely been inspired to do it.”

“Aside from my mom, I didn’t have very positive role models growing up, [and] I wanted to be that for my future family,” Wilson said, “and be that for other kids who also don’t have positive role models.”