Hoquiam Police Patrol Sergeant Jeff Salstrom says he isn’t a risk-taker. “I don’t like roller coasters, I don’t like heights,” said the 14-year police veteran.
But, whether he admits it or not, Salstrom is most definitely a risk-taker, someone who has put his life on the line to ensure the safety of others. And, his record with the police department is proof.
In 2013, Salstrom was shot during a standoff in which he displayed unbelievable calm to keep those around him safe and, in another instance, heroically rescued a little boy who was being mauled by a mastiff.
“When you talk about guardians of our community, Jeff is that person,” said Hoquiam Police Chief Jeff Myers.
For his valor and bravery in protecting the residents of Hoquiam, Salstrom has been selected as The Daily World’s 2014 Police Officer of the Year. The award is presented each year in honor of Hoquiam Police Officer Donald Burke, who was shot and killed in the line of duty in 1980.
Notwithstanding the severity of the two experiences and the danger Salstrom put himself in, he plays it off as business as usual.
“I know it’s our job as police officers. You might be scared, there’s nothing wrong with being scared. But, you still have to go out and perform.”
Childhood aspirations
Salstrom knew he wanted to be a police officer from an early age, and says he watched shows like “Emergency!” and “CHiPs” while growing up in Aberdeen. But, Salstrom had another passion early on, too: dogs.
“Dog” was Salstrom’s first word as a baby, and he says although he didn’t have a dog of his own until he was an adult, the animals always intrigued him. And, that fascination took on a whole new meaning after an Aberdeen Police Officer came to Stevens Elementary School while Salstrom was a student and showed a video on police K9s.
From then on, Salstrom not only wanted to be a police officer, but a K9 handler, too.
“I thought having the police dog was the coolest thing,” said Salstrom.
Salstrom graduated from Aberdeen High School in 1993 and was hired by the Forks Police Department in 1999, where he worked for two years before joining Hoquiam in 2001 and graduated from the police academy with academic honors and defensive tactics award.
While working as a patrol officer in 2005, Salstrom was approached by then-Hoquiam Police Chief Rick Thomas, who asked him about starting a K9 program. Salstrom did the needed research and then presented his findings to Thomas and the City Council’s Public Safety Committee before the idea was approved.
That same year, Salstrom spent six weeks in Indiana at Landheim Training and Boarding, where he found “Enno,” the German shepherd that would be Salstrom’s partner for the next seven years. Salstrom was accredited as a K9 officer in 2006.
Salstrom has nothing but fond memories of the dual-purpose police dog, including multiple instances in which Enno tracked down evidence or suspects police wouldn’t have been able to locate otherwise.
The dog was with Salstrom all the time, in his patrol car, at the station and at home with his wife and kids.
“That was the most important part of my career,” said Salstrom of working with Enno. “He was an awesome dog.”
On Feb. 8, 2013, Enno died after battling cancer, leaving Salstrom without a law enforcement partner and a companion. The loss left Salstrom heartbroken.
On patrol, Enno would sit in the back of Salstrom’s car, and Salstrom said he still occasionally forgets that the dog is gone.
“It’s been two and half years now and I still reach back there. It’s hard for people who weren’t K9 handlers to understand what that bond is,” he said.
A tough year
That year, 2013, was filled with emotions for Salstrom. In addition to grieving the loss of Enno, Salstrom was involved in two of the most traumatic police calls of his career.
In March, Salstrom went to a house in the 2800 block of Aberdeen Avenue to make an arrest on felony fraud charges. When Salstrom and Hoquiam Officer Phillip High entered the back door of the house, the suspect, Rick Marlowe, picked up a gun and opened fire on the officers.
Salstrom was shot in the hip during the shootout and had his microphone hit with a bullet, as well, forcing him to call dispatch from his cellphone after both of the officers and Marlowe held fire. When listening to the call to dispatch, it is impossible to ignore the amazing calm with which Salstrom speaks.
“It’s absolutely amazing that someone could maintain that level of presence. In this case, especially as a sergeant, it really exemplifies the type of person he is. I’m proud to have him in the department,” said Myers.
The standoff continued for over 20 hours and ended with Marlowe being shot by police and his house engulfed in flames.
Seven months later, in October, Salstrom found himself in another near-death experience and, once again, came out the situation alive and labeled a hero.
Salstrom responded to a 911 open-line call with a female screaming at a location not a mile away from his location. When Salstrom arrived, he jumped the house’s backyard fence and found an 8-year-old boy covered in blood, being attacked by a mastiff.
Salstrom tased the dog, forcing the animal to let go of the boy, before grabbing the 8-year-old and taking him toward the house. With the boy in one hand and his gun in the other, Salstrom shot the dog and then handed the boy to his grandmother. Salstrom shot the animal twice more, killing it, before carrying the 8-year-old’s 15-year-old babysitter out of the yard.
The incident was especially hard for Salstrom, give his love for dogs.
“That was more stressful for me than getting into the shootout because that guy was trying to kill me, so I don’t have a lot of sympathy for him. But the dog was just being a dog,” he said.
Active shooters
Salstrom is Hoquiam’s active shooter instructor and has worked with both fire departments and the Sheriff’s Office to teach officers how to work with emergency personnel during a mass shooting.
The drills put local agencies ahead of the curve, according to Myers, who explained the drills train both police officers and emergency responders to enter a building that has a shooter inside. Most agencies have police officers go into the location first, which Myers says could be the difference between life and death in that type of situation.
“It’s not just the response of the officers, but also forming rescue teams with their responding EMS providers so we can extract people as quickly as possible. We don’t have time to wait for a SWAT team. We need to get patients extracted as quickly as possible before they bleed to death,” said Myers.
The new approach was Aberdeen Fire Chief Ron Hubbard’s idea. Hubbard said Salstrom’s role as an instructor has been invaluable.
“(Salstrom) was instrumental on the police side as far as the tactics involved,” said Hubbard.
On top of being an active shooter instructor, Salstrom has also organized a tactical first aid class for both the Hoquiam and Aberdeen police department’s Crisis Response Unit members.
Dedicated officer
Myers made clear that the two incidents in 2013 don’t define Salstrom as a police officer, adding that he “continues to be a very dedicated, productive and engaged officer on the street.”
When Salstrom isn’t on duty, he’s at home with his wife Jessica and three kids, Lucas, 11, Jacob, 10, and Alex, who is five.
Salstrom has numerous contacts, professional and otherwise, that always put him in “the know.” Although, that knowledge isn’t only used when on duty, but also to help others in the department when needed.
Salstrom’s youngest son looks up to his father and wants to follow in his footsteps as a police officer, said Myers.
“He always tells me he’s a chief, too,” said Myers of Alex. “It’s one of those special things. You see the value in a person through the eyes of their child.”
A banquet honoring The Daily World’s Officer, Firefighter and Citizen of the Year is set for 6 p.m. Thursday, April 30, at the Hoquiam Elks. For more information, contact The Daily World at 532-4000.
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