TDOS/THP Promotes Eleven Officers
Nashville, Tennessee — The Tennessee Department of Safety announced the promotions of 11 dedicated members of the Tennessee Highway Patrol. The promotion ceremony was held Monday, March 24, 2008, at 10:00 a.m., at the THP Training Center located at 275 Stewarts Ferry Pike in Nashville.
Commissioner Dave Mitchell, Colonel Mike Walker and members of THP’s Command Staff presented rank advancements to the following members of the Tennessee Highway Patrol:
Sergeant Jeffery Cook started his career with the Tennessee Highway Patrol more than 10 years ago as a Trooper in Marshall County. In 1999, he was transferred to Fentress County where, in addition to serving as a Trooper, he was a member of the Cookeville District Riot Squad. Cook is also a member of the Cookeville Strike Team, which recently served the citizens of Macon County after tornados struck that community. Cook currently lives in Fentress County with his wife, Terri, and their three children.
Kevin Smith advances to the rank of Sergeant after serving most recently as a Trooper in Roane County. Smith started his career at the Knox County Scales in 2000. Two years later, he attended the Tennessee Highway Patrol Academy and was assigned to Roane County. In June of 2004, Smith was deployed to Iraq. When his tour of duty ended 18 months later, Smith returned to his position in Roane County. He is currently assigned to the Knox County Scales and is a member of the Honor Guard, the Knoxville Strike Team and the Interdiction Plus Unit. Smith currently lives in his hometown of Knoxville, TN.
Roy L. Brown has been promoted to the rank of Sergeant for the Memphis District. He was commissioned in 2000 and was assigned to Shelby County. In 2002, Brown served on the Criminal Interdiction Team and is currently the team leader of the Interdiction Plus Team and the Terrorism Liaison Officer in the Memphis District. Brown has also held the Litter Trooper position in Shelby County. He is a certified TraCS Instructor and DUI Instructor. Brown is from Hornsby, TN, and currently lives in Hardeman, TN, with his wife, Melanie, and two children.
Sergeant Robert Moore has been a member of the Tennessee Highway Patrol for nearly 24 years. He has spent the majority of his career as a Trooper in Dyer County, but has also served Shelby and Lake Counties. Moore is a radar specialist and has also completed the University of North Florida Crash Reconstruction School and the Commercial Motor Vehicle Level I Certification School. Moore and his wife, Patricia, have one daughter and live in Dyer County.
Sergeant Allen Chapman is a 13-year veteran of the Tennessee Highway Patrol. He began his career as a Trooper in Giles County. In 1997, Chapman was transferred to Lawrence County, where he currently is assigned. Chapman holds a B.S. degree in Criminal Justice from Athens State University. He is certified in several fields, including commercial motor vehicle post-crash investigations and crash reconstructions. Chapman and his wife, Caroline, live in Lawrenceburg, TN, and have two children.
Charles Woods, commissioned in 1995, has been promoted to Sergeant in the Jackson District. Woods’ first assignment was as a Trooper in Decatur County. In 1998, he was transferred to Henderson County, where he presently serves. Woods is also a radar instructor and field training officer. He is a graduate of Jackson State Community College and lives with his family in his hometown of Lexington, TN.
Sergeant Anthony Caudle has been a member of the Tennessee Highway Patrol for nearly 10 years. He was first assigned to Williamson County and transferred to Rutherford County in 2000. While serving there, Caudle worked with K-9 Hondo and on the Criminal Interdiction Team. Caudle was also assigned to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Criminal Intelligence Unit and assisted with the formation a new fugitive program. This joint effort between the TBI and THP is now part of the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Program. In 2004, Caudle was assigned to Executive Security, where he currently serves.
Patricia Hester has been promoted to the rank of Special Agent in Charge. She began her career with the State of Tennessee in 1976 as a junior account clerk with the Department of Revenue, Motor Vehicle Division. In 1979, Hester became a commissioned officer, working with the Motor Vehicle Investigations Unit. In 1983, the division was transferred to the Department of Safety. Since that time, Hester has held several positions within TDOS, including Deputy Inspector of the Anti-Theft Unit and Special Agent in the Criminal Investigations Division (CID) serving Sumner, Wilson, Trousdale, Macon and Smith Counties. In 2007, Hester was transferred to CID Headquarters in Nashville. She lives with her husband, retired Special Agent in Charge Jimmy Hester, in Hermitage, TN. They have three children and seven grandchildren.
Special Agent Matthew Minter began his career at the Coffee County Scales as an enforcement officer with the Public Service Commission in 1995. The following year, he joined the Department of Safety as an officer with the Commercial Vehicle Enforcement Division (CVE). Minter was transferred to Marion County in 2000. He served as a CVE Officer until becoming a THP Trooper in 2004. Minter is a field training officer, radar instructor, Interdiction Team member and Clandestine Methamphetamine Lab technician. He lives in his hometown of Jasper, TN, with his wife and two sons.
Fred R. Moore, Jr. has been promoted to Special Agent with the Tennessee Highway Patrol’s Criminal Investigations Division. In 1970, Moore joined the TN Army National Guard and went on active duty with the U.S. Army as a special agent. He retired from military service 23 years later and joined the U.S. Department of Energy. Moore retired from there in 2005, as the Assistant Special Agent in Charge for the Office of Special Operations and joined the TN Office of Homeland Security as a Commissioned Law Enforcement Officer and Regional Advisor. Moore is from Haywood County and currently lives in Linden, TN, with his wife, Betty Moore.
Special Agent William (Tommy) Spivy has been a member of the Tennessee Highway Patrol for 30 years. His first assignment was in Lincoln County in 1978. Since then, Spivy has worked as a member of the Governor’s Security Detail and as a Safety Education Officer. In 1990, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant and currently serves in Marshall County. Law enforcement runs in his family. His son, Will, is a THP Trooper stationed in Lincoln County, and his other son, Brett, is a police officer in Franklin, TN. Spivy and his wife, Cecilia, currently live in his hometown of Lewisburg, TN.