NEWPORT — The Newport Police Department has reached its full complement of 54 officers with the addition of four officers this week, but they won't all be on the job for several months.

        Police Chief Tom Fromme is pleased, however, that his department is at full strength at the same time the Newport on the Levee entertainment district is coming on line and attracting many new visitors to the city.

        “There's no question that the continuing development in the city is a significant factor in the growth of the police department,” the chief said Wednesday. “And that's not just Newport on the Levee, but all the development on the riverfront and around the city.”

        Three of the officers, sworn in by Mayor Tom Guidugli at Monday's city commission meeting, are new to policing. They will undergo 16 weeks of training at the Kentucky Criminal Justice Training facility at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond. They are Todd Suszek, Chad Cunningham and Lawrence Hoppius.

        The fourth officer is a 22-year veteran of Northern Kentucky police work, Tom Collins, who retired as Ludlow police chief in September.

        “We're fortunate to bring someone with his level of experience and knowledge of police work to the department,” Chief Fromme said of Mr. Collins, 45, who was Ludlow chief for 12 years.

        Mr. Collins will not require the same amount of training time to being patrolling the Newport streets, the chief said.

        “The three new men will undergo in-house training before going to Richmond, probably in mid-November,” he said. “They will have 16 weeks of training there, and then will undergo a 14-week field-training program here where they will ride with a field training officer and be evaluated before they move to a beat.”

        Mr. Collins, because of his experience, will probably need only about eight weeks of in-house and field training, learning the Newport area and the various forms used in Newport, before taking to the streets. He will also undergo firearms and other certification.

        “I'm really happy about coming to the Newport department,” Mr. Collins said. “This is an excellent opportunity for me, and I think I can be a real asset to the city. It's a new challenge.”

        Chief Fromme said without Newport on the Levee and other developments, the department would probably be at about 48 officers now instead of 54. He expects the department to grow to about 62 officers by 2004.

        “We want people to feel safe when they come to the city, and it's obvious that we will continue to have more visitors in the next few years as Newport becomes more of a tourist attraction,” the chief said.

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