There’s a new face in Addison Township – Sgt. Pete Burkett, of the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department, has taken command of the Addison Township Substation.
“I’m very excited to serve the community here,” said Burkett. “I enjoy working in a rural area. I live in a small area myself, I was a patrolman and detective in Brandon Township, so I know how things work.”
Burkett, 38, a Detroit native, lives with his wife and two children in Goodrich. The avid hunter and sports fan, not to mention youth football coach, has been with the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department for going on 15 years.
“I graduated from Grand Valley State University in 1987 with a BA in criminal justice,” Burkett stated. “After that I went to work as a patrolman in Royal Oak Township.”
In 1989 Burkett was hired and stationed as a deputy in the jail by the Oakland County Sheriff’s Department. He later went on to road patrol in Independence, Brandon and Rochester Hills until 1995 when he was promoted to detective/patrol for Brandon Township. By 1999, Burkett was promoted to sergeant. His time was split between Rochester Hills and the jail until 2001 when he joined the department’s Special Investigation Unit.
“I’ve also been a part of the Special Response Team since 1992 and became Assistant Commander in 2001,” added Burkett.
Burkett was assigned to the Addison Township Substation on November 15. He is replacing (Sgt. John Ousnamer), who is now the command officer in the county jail in Pontiac.
“I’m looking forward to having the experience of running a substation,” said Burkett. “I’m also looking forward to working with the community and being more involved with the policing instead of the investigating.”
Burkett said he will be working hard to become familiar with his new administrative duties and to form relationships with community leaders. He plans on running the substation with an “open door” policy, so that anyone can come in to speak with him and his deputies. When looking into the future, the new commander hopes to see a detective assigned to the area one day.
“I’m looking forward to serving this area,” Burkett said. “An important goal for me is to keep the relationship and contact with the community strong.”