DPS Employees of the Month
March Sworn Employee of the Month
Gary E. Gundy
Trooper
Missouri State Highway Patrol
March Non-Sworn Employee of the Month
Tim Kempker and Liz Leuckel
Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Unit
Office of the Director
Gary E. Gundy, a Trooper with the Missouri State Highway Patrol, has been selected as the Department of Public Safety’s March 2019 Sworn Employee of the Month.
Gary is a road trooper assigned to central Missouri’s Troop F. He was chosen for the excellence he demonstrated during four separate high-stress incidents he handled over a one-week period in November, including capturing a suspected bank robber.
While off duty, Gary stopped on I-70 to check on what first appeared to be a medical emergency in a vehicle. It turned out to be a domestic assault in progress. Gary captured the fleeing suspect, subdued him and held him until police arrived.
Four days later, Gary was working a crash on I-70 when a multi-vehicle crash occurred, killing four people. Gary handled control of the scene, rerouting traffic, and the initial investigation with professionalism.
The next day, while handling paperwork from the crash, Gary learned of an armed bank robbery, responded, and quickly located and apprehended a suspect – who was half his age – after a foot pursuit.
One day later, Gary responded to a crash involving a commercial vehicle hauling car batteries. He handled the investigation and remained in contact with the Department of Natural Resources, tow company, and the contractor cleaning up the hazardous materials, even when off-duty.
Congratulations to Gary for the outstanding example he’s set for his co-workers throughout the Department of Public Safety!
Tim Kempker and Liz Leuckel, with the Office of the Director’s Criminal Justice/Law Enforcement Unit, have been selected as the Department of Public Safety's March 2019 Non-Sworn Employees of the Month.
Tim and Liz administer the Law Enforcement Support Office (LESO) Program, which gets valuable surplus U.S. Department of Defense equipment to Missouri law enforcement agencies to help them better serve their communities. They’re being recognized for their outstanding efforts, efficiency and commitment to serving our local law enforcement partners.
The LESO Program allows Missouri law enforcement agencies to acquire useful law enforcement and emergency response equipment they would never be able to afford due to budget constraints. But responding to the 300 Missouri agencies now utilizing the program and complying with complicated federal oversight requirements takes long hours, patience and attention to detail. Tim and Liz meet all of these expectations while working in an off-site office of DPS.
Largely self-trained, Tim and Liz have administered the LESO Program for less than two years but continue to perform exceedingly well managing an inventory that now exceeds 6,300 pieces of property and $26 million in value.
Their efforts make Tim and Liz outstanding models for other DPS employees to emulate!
The Missouri Department of Public Safety. Many Missions. One Team