Law enforcement can get messy sometimes. Such was the case Wednesday, as officers converged on the house of a man suffering a mental health crisis in West Bremerton. As officers surrounded the place, a sergeant, Randy Plumb, inadvertently stepped on an Iris in the neighbor’s yard.

“The very nice neighbor expressed great thankfulness we were there doing our job, but also expressed her displeasure in the sergeant stepping on her plants,” Plumb wrote in his report of the incident.

Be sure to note that Sgt. Plumb referred to himself in the third person, which Bremerton Police Chief Steve Strachan believes might have been to “create a distance from personal responsibility.” (If it isn’t obvious, the chief has a good sense of humor.) 

Plumb did indeed take personal responsibility, however. Following “much grief” from colleagues there, he drove to Bremerton City Nursery and purchased a brand new, fully grown Iris for the neighbor, Jen Budis.

“When the Sergeant explained the circumstances to the nursery employee, they laughed and insisted on giving him a discount,” Strachan said.  “With his tail between his legs, Sgt. Plumb responded back to the neighbor’s house, offered an apology, and presented the new iris plant.”

And Budis’ response? She took to Facebook to share it. 

And, more good news: Bremerton police, with help of deputies from the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, were able to help the man in crisis out of his home and the situation was resolved safely.

The new Iris, too, is reportedly doing well.  

Next time you get stopped by a Bremerton police officer, take note of those stripes you see on his or her sleeve. 

OK, so that might not be the first thing on your mind if you’re being pulled over. But the sleeve can tell you a lot about an officer’s rank.

In Bremerton, it’s becoming a bit more nuanced. An officer who makes the rank of sergeant has three blue “stripes” on the arm (see photo below). But here in the city, you’ll soon see seven officers who have two stripes (see photo above).

Those seven are the department’s first corporals, a position that is roughly between an officer and a sergeant. The Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office actually did away with the position years ago but Bremerton is bringing them back.

The reason, Bremerton Police Chief Steve Strachan explained at Wednesday’s City Council meeting, was born out of a top-to-bottom review of the police department completed three years ago.

That review found flaws in the former “MPO” or “Master Patrol Officer” program, whose participants could cover for sergeants to run the shift. The review also found that not many officers were looking to get into management roles, Strachan said Wednesday.

Strachan is hopeful the new rank not only introduces the seven corporals to leadership roles but that it it inspires them to go even higher.

These will be the leaders of the department long after folks like me are gone,” Strachan told the Council.

The department is also bringing back a third lieutenant position — the next step up from a sergeant —  which had been the victim of budget cuts a few years ago.

There’s a lot of open positions right now in the police department. Lt. Pete Fisher left to be chief of the Fife Police Department, so they’ll have to fill two lieutenant spots. And the city held a retirement ceremony Wednesday for Randy Olson, a longtime sergeant and officer who’d been with the city since 1988.

“Part of me will always be a Bremerton police officer,” Olson told the Council.

Bremerton Police Lt. Pete Fisher, who was often the face of the department in times of crisis in the past decade, is set to become the police chief of Fife. 

Chief Steve Strachan announced the news in a department email this week.

“That is a loss for us but a great selection by Fife,” Strachan wrote. “Pete is a very talented leader and we have been fortunate to work with him.”

Fisher, 44, started as a line officer in Bremerton in 1998. He made sergeant in 2004 and lieutenant in 2006, where he’s remained. The job includes a lot of administrative work, including making shift schedules, conducting serious collision investigations and performing disciplinary reviews. Fisher also served as liaison to Redflex, the company that runs the city’s red light photo enforcement cameras.

“This has been a great city to work for,” Fisher said Friday. “I’ve had a lot of support and mentorship here. It’s given me the drive to want to become a chief. And I’m at the point in my career where I’m ready to try the next challenge.”

Fisher, a New Hampshire native, spent four years in the Air Force before moving to Puget Sound with his wife Christine, who was in the Army and got stationed at Fort Lewis. He started as a reserve officer in Ruston in 1994.

Fisher’s duties as public information officer found him in the media spotlight on a few occasions, particularly during the hunt for a possible serial killer and the shooting of a third grader at Armin Jahr Elementary in 2012 (police have since found that the two fatal stabbings are likely not related).

Fisher said he learned the importance of “being able to put out a clear message to people.” He also praised Strachan, saying he’s learned a lot from his boss that he thinks he can apply in Fife.

Fisher will head a department that includes more than 33 police officers. He’ll also oversee its 34-bed municipal jail and its 12 corrections officers.

 Bremerton police will promote a sergeant to fill Fisher’s position. 

A video circulated Facebook recently showing a man climbing atop a piling on the Manette Bridge and then plunging into the chilly waters below. His jump, viewed more than 14,000 times, occurred not far from the Boat Shed restaurant, at a point on the bridge that is lower to the water and close to the shore.

Upon seeing the clip, some of you wrote me asking if there’s anything stopping thrill seekers and others from doing the same thing. The answer is that in the eyes of the city, it is considered “mischief on bridges” — it goes for the Warren Avenue Bridge as well — and it is indeed a crime.

I asked assistant Bremerton City Attorney Amanda Harvey, who confirmed to me that such jumps are a misdemeanor, punishable by up to 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine.

This, of course, isn’t the first time someone’s jumped from the span. In 2009, a Bothell man told police he did it for the thrill. He was arrested in that case.

But never mind the legalities — there’s also the danger involved. Sadly, many have died or been injured jumping off the spans.