11/12/2025
We’re back! Although we’ve been here the whole time, our page has been dormant for the past six years. We’ll be periodically posting updates and community information to keep our citizens informed of the goings-on here at the Colfax Police Department!
There have been a lot of changes and new faces over the past few years.
Chief Rick McNannay retired in 2020 after eight years with CFPD. He served many years with the Whitman County Sheriff’s Office, including as a sergeant. He also worked for Moscow PD. We hope he is enjoying his retirement, we hear he’s busier than ever in his current line of work.
Chief Bruce Blood served CFPD from 2020 until retiring in 2024. Prior to that, he spent many years as a trooper with the Washington State Patrol. We thank him for his many years of service to the citizens of Colfax and Washington State.
Officer Cory Alcantar left CFPD in 2019 and is currently working as a deputy across the street for the Whitman County Sheriff’s Office. He serves as the regional school resource officer (including Colfax), for which we are very grateful. He’s an assistant football coach at Colfax HS and is himself a former college long-snapper for the EWU football team. It’s said he owns the Big Sky Conference record for the longest snap and he claims to be able to snap a football over Steptoe Butte. Consider us skeptical…
Officer Joey McCollum served from 2019 until 2023.
Officer Tyler Paris served from 2020 until 2022.
Officer Chase Kurtz served from 2021 until 2024.
Officer Erica Warren served from 2023 until 2024.
We wish all of them well in the next chapter of their respective careers.
Officer Cody Johnson was hired in the summer of 2024. He completed the basic law enforcement academy in January 2025. Originally from Oregon, he served eight years in the US Navy, where he was deployed numerous times as an ejection seat technician for F/A-18 Super Hornets. He has deep generational family roots in Colfax. We thank him for his service and are thrilled to have him here with CFPD!
Chief Michael Melcher was appointed in February 2025. The first three years of his career were spent working in various jails and prisons. He has spent the past fifteen years in law enforcement, working for Garfield County, Whitman County and Walla Walla County. He served as a field training officer, marine patrol deputy, s*x crimes investigator, drone operator and taser instructor. He is grateful and excited for the opportunity to lead the Colfax Police Department for years to come!
And of course we can’t forget about Officer Perry Tate. He’s served CFPD for 19+ years and counting. He remains the only officer in the history of the department to scrap with a vicious beaver. Although Officer Tate came out on the short end during this encounter, it serves as a reminder of his dedication to service (this is a true story)!
We are looking to hire two officers for our vacant positions. Stay tuned for updates on this and much more!
