Dana Powers Named Interim Chief of Bonney Lake Police

Bonney Lake assistant chief of police Dana Powers was recently named interim chief; she will take over when . A lifelong Lake Tapps resident, swim coach and mother of two boys at Sumner High, Powers is looking forward to continuing Mitchell’s current programs while keeping an eye out for improvement.

Patch sat down with Powers to discuss her background, policing philosophy and love for all things outdoors.

Where did you grow up? I grew up six miles from here and lived on Lake Tapps – my family was from here and this is where I started my family. My dad was a Tacoma firefighter and built homes, this whole area was my backyard. I’ve seen this city grow from Elhi Hill, a two-lane road with gravel on it with a couple businesses here and there, to what it is now. I’ve seen where [Bonney Lake] has been and where it’s going.

What made you want to become a police officer? I went away to college at the University of Nebraska, had a swimming scholarship and majored in public relations and communications. I realized I had this fancy degree, and now what? I wasn’t quite sure what to do. My brother worked for Tacoma Police and I thought it would be a great career path for me, because it is active. There is this team concept that I’m used to in sports and it there is so much you could do in one career field, without sitting behind a desk.

Where did you start your policing career? I got a job with Tacoma PD and worked there for two years before [transitioning] over to Bonney Lake. I came on as a patrol officer and was the first D.A.R.E. officer for Bonney Lake. I did that for three years, then went over to patrol and helped two other officers start the marine services program. Then I was part of the SWAT team that eventually turned into Metro Pierce. I was also on bike patrol, became a detective and from there I was promoted to sergeant and assistant chief. I have been assistant chief since 2008.

Is it hard being a female police officer in a male-dominated industry? I always push myself to do it better than the other guy. It’s not the pressure that other people put on me, I put it on myself – I feel like I can’t make a mistake. I’ve always driven myself that way. When people ask me what it’s like going into this position as woman, I say, aren’t we kind of beyond that? To do this job, you need a brain and street smarts, so I don’t look at is as a challenge, being a female. I’ve always pushed myself beyond that; I have never felt like it held me back. I just cant imagine that thought process, in this day and age.

What is the most difficult part of your job? This is a very difficult job because you’re there at people’s worst moments. Even if you’re helping someone out so they don’t get beat up, or you’re taking a drunk off the road… we end up being the bad guys who hurt people’s lives. A lot of families put the blame on police officers and people just don’t like being told what to do. It can be difficult to stay positive in this line of work but you are always looking out to do what’s right when no one is looking – that is the highest ethic. You are always dealing with the 1 percent of the population wrecking havoc and mayhem, but I think 99 percent of the population understands what you’re going through. You strap on that vest and gear knowing every day that bad things could happen to you or to someone’s family. You're there to take care of the situation – when the bad does happen, you just have to be there and try and prevent it.

What’s your favorite part of the job? Being part of something, part of this department. When you’re doing real police work, you’re making a difference, even if you don’t always know what that difference is. When you pull over a drunk driver, were they about to kill someone? You take that person, and that possibility, off the road. You can never tell who you’re stopping. That’s what I really enjoy in this line of work, when we come through and people appreciate you being there. It’s huge, and it makes you feel really good when the citizens recognize it and support you. You go to Bonney Lake Days or National Night Out and people come up and talk to you about patrol cars, law enforcement… it’s fun to talk to people about what you do.

What are your goals for the department? I love that we have the reputation that you don’t speed in Bonney Lake. When Chief Mitchell first got here, we had six fatalities. Because of that, we focused on our traffic unit. Unfortunately for a lot of people, that means there are citations involved. But, it gives us the opportunity to be out there – our marine, nighttime and weeknight patrols gets the speed lower so fatalities are fewer and farther between.

I had a lot of influence as assistant chief; Chief Mitchell has a lot of great programs he was able to start and I’ll be able to finish. I plan on continuing those communication programs and will look at the programs we do have and how we can make them better and do more for the city, for less. My goal is always, how can we keep ourselves open to the public? Saying ‘the door’s open’ really does mean, the door is open, let’s have a conversation.

You’re the swim coach at Sumner High School. Will you continue to coach, once you’re Chief? This year, we’ll find out. My first job is here and the administration at Sumner School District understands that priority. I’m going to stay one more year for sure, unless the city administrator or mayor says no. I hope to never give them a reason for that, because this job is my priority. My son is a senior at SHS so it’s important for me to finish at least this year and see the kids graduate that I started working with. If it goes well, we’ll see. But I’m burning the candle at both ends, I can’t let this department down and I can’t let down the kids at SHS down, either. When I start seeing that I’m letting someone down, I have to give something up.

What do you like to do in your spare time? Everything! I waterski, snow ski, snowmobile, ride motorcycles, golf… I like to play. I have a new home that I moved into in March, I love working on it, making it look good and making it my own.

What’s Bonney Lake’s greatest challenge? The economy. The economy drives peoples’ behavior. People are concerned about their families, putting bread on the table and a roof over their heads, and it drives people to commit crimes when they may not have committed crimes before. But, if you look at our crime stats, they are starting to drop.

What will be your management philosophy, as Chief? You have to hold people accountable for their actions, including me. If I do the best I can, the way I look at it is, how will it make my mom and dad feel? Not just King 5 news, but in anything I do, am I making my parents proud? Am I making my kids proud of who I am? That’s important to me. If I have those components in place, I know I am doing it right, to the best of my ability.