Dan Aten: Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office

Lt. Dan Aten is the special operations lieutenant assigned to the Patrol Division. He is responsible for command of specialized units to include the School Resource Unit, Canine Unit, Directed Operations Unit, the SWAT team and the Traffic Unit.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office is committed to traffic safety through education and enforcement. Reducing injury- and death-related accidents, and unsafe driving is a goal of the four members of the Traffic Unit. The team employs resources based on Strategic Management and Accurate Response Tactics, known as SMART(er) JeffCo.

This problem-solving model places responsibility to identify problems and solutions at the deputy level. The process employs real-time crime analysis combined with proven and innovative crime-reduction techniques. This allows the lieutenant to identify and address current traffic conditions, and prevent future problems from arising.

The Sheriff's Office is a proud recipient of a Highway 285 and Highway 93 speed grant. The grants provide overtime monies to focus resources on locations that have been identified as "high crash locations," with the primary goal being to reduce speed-related crashes. The Traffic Unit, thanks in part to this grant, is instrumental in the Sheriff's Office's vision for Jefferson County to be a safe place to live, learn, work and play.