HOWELL – The month of April marked a milestone for the Howell Police Department as the agency introduced the first two certified motorcycle officers in the department’s 47-year history.
Cpl. Jason Baratta and Patrolman Michael Silvani are the new motorcycle officers. Both men attended a two-week course offered by the Philadelphia Police Department Highway Patrol.
Baratta said “it is pretty cool” to be a part of Howell history.
“This is historic for the department and for myself. I am proud and happy to be a part of that,” he said, adding he has always had a love of motorcycles and noting this will be his first chance to mix his passion and his profession.
“I have been riding motorcycles my whole life and to do this is awesome, but at the same time, going through the school was really difficult. I have been riding motorcycles my whole life, but the (training) was demanding. I had really good instructors so that is probably why (Silvani) and I both did very well, but it was tough,” Baratta said.
The officers will use a motorcycle as their primary vehicle and switch to a squad car when they are on duty during inclement weather.
The first chance Baratta and Silvani had to try out their new motorcycles was when they rode from Howell to Philadelphia to obtain their certification.
“We both rode the motorcycles to Philadelphia, where we got our wings pinned on and then rode back to Howell,” Baratta said. “We will be using (the motorcycles) for parades, funerals, special details and for patrol.”
Baratta credited Police Chief Andrew Kudrick for establishing a motorcycle unit, saying that when Kudrick became chief, “a (motorcycle unit) was one of the things he wanted to accomplish and now we have two.”
Howell police saluted Baratta and Silvani with a Facebook post which said, “Congratulations to both of these officers on this accomplishment. A sincere thank you to the officers assigned to this unit. We recognize instructor officers Chuck Taylor, Joe Hanson, Sgt. Bill Kleinkurt, Jim Trainor and Kyle Mallard for their expertise, patience, and most of all their hospitality to our officers. They are true professionals.
“Howell police now has a bond with the Philadelphia police and will be sending additional officers. You will see these officers patrolling Howell very soon. Please say hello and remember to never call them ‘bikes’ … they are ‘motors’ or ‘wheels.’ “