Leadership

Jill Distel

Vice President - Civilian's Representative

Jill M. Distel, Administrative Assistant III, has been employed by Colorado State Patrol since April 1, 1996. She has served on Board of Directors of ACSPP since July 2004 and a Trustee for CSPFF since February 2006. She has worked in the legal profession as a Legal Assistant for 10 years for a private attorney and the 13th Judicial District Attorney’s office. She also served a five year term on our local school board’s District Accountability Board as well as on the Sterling High School and Sterling Middle School’s Accountability Board and as treasurer and president of Sterling Athletic Booster Club.

Jill is currently a four year member of the Logan County Planning and Zoning Board, four year member of the Logan County Crimestoppers Board serving three years as Treasurer, three year chairperson for St Anthony’s Catholic Church Environmental Committee, and a three year certified Child Passenger Safety Technician including a two year Fit Station Coordinator with CPS Team Colorado.

Jill is married with two grown children and has three wonderful granddaughters.

Ron Prater

Commissioned Officer's Representative

Captain Ron Prater was born and reared in Chicago, Illinois. He is currently the officer in charge of . He has three children and one grandchild. He is also a graduate of Bob Jones University and he completed the Northwestern School of Police Staff and Command in 2005.

Captain Prater has been involved with many community organizations and projects in Summit County. He is an instructor with the Colorado State Patrol Life Enrichment Unit. His duty assignments have included time in the Four Corners area and over a decade on the Interstate 70 corridor.

Lynnette Stieb-Sorensen

Communications Officer's Representative

Lynnette Stieb-Sorensen, born and raised in Sterling, Co. The majority of her family still resides in Northeast Colorado, between the Loveland/Fort Collins area and the Sterling/Iliff area.

She began her career in communications in Ogallala, NE. Once she returned to Colorado, she began her career with the Colorado State Patrol in August of 1980, in the Craig Communications Center. At that time, there were still 17 centers across the state. In 1984, she transferred into the Denver Communications Center which was was still on Arkansas Street and only served the metro area. In 1986, whe was promoted to Communications Supervisor and moved back to Craig. In April 1999, Lynnette was promoted to Regional Communications Manager remaining in Craig, until August 2004, when she transferred to the Denver Regional Communications Center.

William "Mark" Holt

President - Non-Commissioned Officer's Representative

Sergeant Mark Holt joined the ranks of the Colorado State Patrol on September 29, 1991. He is currently a Master Sergeant in Troop 2-A in Canon City, Colorado.

Joseph "Joe" Mikita

Retired Member's Representative

Joe Mikita retired in 1994 as a Major.

Jay Hemphill

Specialized Services

Trooper Jay Hemphill has been a member of the Colorado State Patrol since 1995.  He is currently assigned to the Executive Security Unit at Colorado's State Capitol in Denver. 

Kirk Preston

District 1 Representative

Corporal Kirk Preston has been with the Colorado State Patrol since 1983.  He is currently assigned to the District 1-A Troop office in Limon, CO.  Right out of the academy he was assigned to the now closed, Cherry Creek office from 1983 to 1986.  After that, Corporal Preston transferred to the Burlington post of Troop 1-A.  He ha been a Member of the PPA and ACSPP since 1983.  Corporal Preston notes: "I have had the legal defense coverage since it was offered.  I have been involved in two shooting incidents in my 27 years.  From these incidents, I received expert representation and advice from the lawyers provided.  The continuing lobby efforts for the well being of its ACSPP members, legal defense fund and life insurance are all reasons why I am proud to be a Member."

Randy Novotny

District II Representative

Corporal Randy Novotny has been a member of the Colorado State Patrol since 1983. He has worked in the Colorado Springs area since graduating from the Academy. He was one of only four Troopers selected to participate in the National Pilot Program for the Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) training developed by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Randy also participated in the Community Policing Consortium and was an original member of the Colorado State Patrol Selections Team.

He has also been very active in community organizations including Mothers Againist Drunk Driving (MADD), local Neighborhood Watch Programs, and the Drive Smart program in Colorado Springs.

Robert "Shain" Larson

District III Representative

Corporal Robert "Shain" Larson has been with the Colorado State Patrol since 2001.  He is currently assigned to the District 3-A Troop office in Evans, Colorado.

Larry Graves

District IV Representative

Trooper Larry Graves joined the Colorado State Patrol January 8, 1996. He is currently assigned to Troop 4-C and resides in Avon, Colorado.

Benjamin C. Nicholson

District V Representative

Trooper Ben Nicholson grew up around Mosca, Colorado, some 13 miles north of Alamosa. He graduated from Adams State Collete in 1998. In January of 2000, Ben joined the Colorado State Patrol and after graduation from the Academy, he was assigned to the Colorado State Patrol post in South Fork, Colorado, where he continues to reside with his wife and three children.

J.R. Greninger

District VI Representative

J.R. Greninger began his career with the Colorado State Patrol on July 16, 2001. He currently serves as a Corporal in Troop 6-A in Golden, Colorado.

Lonnie J. Westphal

Executive Director

Lonnie J. Westphal was a member of the Colorado State Patrol for 29 years and retired in 2003 after serving as the Chief for the last 8 years of his career. He has a Bachelors degree in Business Administration from Colorado State University, a Masters Degree in Public Administration from the University of Denver, and served in the U.S. Navy as a Romanian linguist at the National Security Agency. He attended the Program for Senior Executives in State & Local Government at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, the Police Executive Institute at the FBI Academy, and was a Board Member of the National Commission Against Drunk Driving. He is also a former Vice President of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and is currently a member of the Advisory Board for The Century Council, an organization funded by the major distillers of America that strives to reduce underage drinking and drunk driving.

As of June of 2006, Lonnie Westphal took over as the Executive Director of the Association of Colorado State Patrol Professionals and the Colorado State Patrol Family Foundation, which includes management of the Alive at 25 program. He has been married to his wife, Annette, for 43 years, has a son living in Washington DC and a daughter who passed away October 12, 2008 leaving her two children and husband.