By Ernie Over
WyoToday
The new chief of police for Riverton is Eric Hurtado from Hoonah, Alaska. The decision was made following an executive session of the city council Tuesday night. Mayor Tim Hancock said Hurtado had interviewed with the city two weeks ago. His start date is in May. Since the retirement of former Chief Eric Murphy, Captain Wes Romero has served in the position of interim chief of police.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Hurtado has been the chief of police and director of public safety since Sept. 202o in Hoonah, a town just outside Alaska’s capitol city, Juneau.
Before Hoonah, Hurtado served as an operational specialist for the Critical Solutions Protective Serves Group, Inc., in Los Angeles; and was the chief of police in the city of California City, Calif., for 28 years. He began his law enforcement career as a deputy sheriff in Ventura County, Calif.
He has a Master’s of business administration and management from the University of Phoenix and he is a former instructor at the Cerro Coso Community College in Ridgecrest, Calif.