County benefits from Kitzman’s marksmanship under pressure
By Brandi Makuski
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The Portage Co. Sheriff’s Office gets to make some much-needed improvement to their shooting range, thanks to Detective Dustin Kitzman.
Kitzman, 34 of Stevens Point, finished third in last year’s ALERT (Advanced Law Enforcement Risk Training) shooting competition at the law enforcement range in Dewey. The contest is sponsored annually by Wisconsin County Mutual Corporation, which provides liability insurance coverage for Portage Co. and much of the state.
The 2018 competition had law enforcement contestants from 21 counties. Kitzman was awarded a Visa gift card for himself, and the sheriff’s office received $6,000.
Sheriff Mike Lukas said officers need to be in excellent physical shape and often train for months to prepare for the competition, which mimics a live-shooter situation. During last October’s test, Kitzman had to sprint 200 yards with his rifle, then accurately fire his service pistol at targets from 25, 10, and five yards, drag a 150-pound dummy about 50 yards and fire his rifle from behind a wall.
Kitzman finished the course in one minute, 43 seconds. Lukas said two points separated the top three competitors.
Kitzman had to audition for the spot, as each department could only second one representative to the competition.
“I’ve tried multiple times,” said Kitzman, the father of two who is also designated as a sniper for the Portage Co. Sheriff’s Office. “I got lucky this year, I finally made the cut.” ”
Wisconsin County Mutual conducts about 500 similar risk management training events throughout the year, helping train municipal and emergency workers for varies levels of risk.
“With these guys, they have the most risky [sic] job of all, they’re literally putting their lives on the line every day,” said Michelle Thompson, communications director for Wisconsin County Mutual. “The scenarios are different each year, but a lot of these situations mimic real life; you could have these guys stand calmly and shoot at a target, but that’s not real life. They’re running, they’re probably out of breath…there’s a million different scenarios where it’s not some sterile, clear-cut environment.”
Jodi Traas, a risk manager with Wisconsin County Mutual, presented Kitzman with a third-place plaque on April 24.
“You have always been one of our premier counties,” Traas said at Wednesday’s county public safety meeting. “You were one of the first counties to do Lexipol (a type of public safety policy software) before we recommended it, you have hosted our law enforcement challenge, you do (Mark Motors) Safety Day in Portage County…your department, by far, has gone above and beyond, and no one even comes close.”
The next competition will be held in Dewey on October 2.