Ledger-Dispatch

By Bethany A. Monk (bmonk@ledger-dispatch.com) =

Jackson Police Department detective = Chris=20 Mynderup and officer Michael Collins were awarded with gallantry = medals by=20 JPD Chief Scott Morrison during the Jan. 5 Jackson City Council = meeting=20 for "a job well done" during the county's recent crime = wave.

Photo by: Courtesy to the Ledger=20 Dispatch
In the midst of the "crime = spree" that=20 shook Amador County recently, Jackson police officers stood strong and = fought=20 hard to help bring those guilty to justice.

Officer Mike Collins = and=20 Detective Chris Mynderup of the Jackson Police Department were = recognized Jan. 5=20 by Chief Scott Morrison during a Jackson City Council meeting. =

In an=20 e-mail to the Ledger Dispatch dated Jan. 16, Morrison praised the two = officers:=20 "With all that has been going on in our community and having so few = coppers, I=20 had to take it a step further by issuing our officers with recognition = that=20 could be seen on the uniform," he wrote. "So I issued Detective Mynderup = and=20 Officer Collins for all their recent efforts in crime fighting, which = has led to=20 subsequent arrests (the rape case, burglaries and vandalisms, to mention = a few=20 ...)."

Morrison awarded both Collins and Mynderup with gallantry = medals=20 for outstanding work. These medals can be worn on their dress blue = uniforms, he=20 said. He also gave them a less ornate medal, which goes on their other = uniform,=20 under their law enforcement badge.

"I think it's great, and long=20 overdue," Collins' wife, Kathy, told the Ledger Dispatch Wednesday, = referring to=20 the recognition for both Collins and Mynderup. "Both he and Chris are = awesome.=20 They really actually care ... they get to know the people, they care = about the=20 citizens. You don't often see that in a larger setting."

Morrison = called=20 Collins a career police officer, noting that Collins' career started in = Idaho,=20 where he worked in several different capacities, including homicide and=20 narcotics. He then moved to California where he worked as a transit cop = in the=20 Bay Area. That is where he and Morrison met, Morrison said. Collins then = went to=20 Idaho and worked there for a while before returning to=20 California.

Collins has worked with the JPD for about 10 years. = "He's=20 apprehended quite a few crooks," Morrison said. "He's 'turning over the = rock,'=20 when working at night," he said in reference to Collins' ability to let = nothing=20 go unnoticed.

"Lately, we've had a minor crime spree in the = county and=20 he's definitely done his part, above and beyond," to bring the culprits = of these=20 crimes to justice. "He almost takes it personally when people are=20 victimized."

Collins said that helping put those behind bars who = are a=20 danger to the community is what keeps him going. "I want to make sure = you can=20 sleep at night, without some person violating your rights." =

Receiving=20 recognition is nice, "but not at all why I do this," he said, when asked = what it=20 was like to receive the medal earlier this month. He also credited = Morrison and=20 the rest of the JPD officers and staff for being a strong department = that works=20 well together.

Jackson City Manager Mike Daly said that he enjoys = working=20 with JPD. He has also seen the way Collins, a Drug Abuse Resistance = Program, or=20 D.A.R.E., officer, interacts with county students. "The kids really like = him,"=20 Daly said, adding that Collins is an asset to the city, as well as the = entire=20 county.

Mynderup is a 9-year veteran of the JPD, Morrison said. = "He put=20 himself through the (Police) Academy," he said, adding that when = Mynderup=20 applied for the JPD detective position he "did very well against veteran = officers.

"I would compare him to any tenured detective at a = larger=20 department," Morrison said. In fact, Mynderup could teach a thing or two = to=20 those who have been in the detective business longer than he has, he=20 added.

"He knows how to be patient and methodical," Morrison = said. "By=20 virtue of this, Chris has solved many crimes in the city, and also works = very=20 well with surrounding agencies."

"Chris is a very hardworking = detective,"=20 said Melinda Aiello, Amador County deputy district attorney. "He's the = kind of=20 person you want working on a case for you."

Mynderup works with = the DA's=20 office on several cases, she said. The most recent case the two worked = on=20 together, Aiello said, was the Dec. 2 robbery and assault at Quiznos in = Jackson.=20 A couple of weeks later, a Quiznos employee and her boyfriend were = arrested for=20 the alleged crime.

When asked what makes his work stand out, = Aiello said=20 that he's "conscientious. I think he's tenacious. He tries to make sure = he=20 explores every avenue. He's very thorough, very professional." =

One of=20 the more challenging cases he's worked on over the years was an arson = and=20 attempted murder incident that took place in spring 2006, Mynderup said. = A woman=20 and man allegedly threw an explosive device at the home of a Jackson = resident.=20 The two were arrested that summer and are now serving 13-year=20 sentences.

Like Collins, helping keep dangerous citizens off the = streets=20 is what keeps Mynderup going. It's all about "making the community = safer," he=20 said.

Even during the most difficult of cases - the ones that = seem like=20 they'll never get solved, Mynderup stays focused, hoping the pieces will = someday=20 come together. He keeps in mind that there's always the "next one to = work on."=20 He also had high praise for Morrison and the rest of the JPD staff. When = asked=20 what it was like to receive the medal he called Morrison=20 "gracious."

Mynderup attended the Police Academy program at San = Joaquin=20 Delta College in Stockton in 1999. He was hired as a patrol officer by = JPD in=20 2001; he also worked as a field instructor for the department. In 2005, = Mynderup=20 applied for and received the detective position open at the department. = He is a=20 native of Fresno and graduated from Clovis West High School in Clovis. = Mynderup=20 lives with his wife Jennifer, who works in the county's probation = department,=20 and their two small children. He also has three children from a previous = marriage.

When asked what challenges she faces having a spouse in = law=20 enforcement, Kathy said she's not a worrier. "I always make sure we hug = and kiss=20 and I say, 'I love you' every day, and then put the rest = aside."

Mike and=20 Kathy Collins have been married for 23 years. They have two children who = live in=20 Virginia; Mike has a son in Arizona and Kathy has a daughter in = Portland,=20 Ore.

Bethany A. = Monk