Photo courtesy of Laurium Village Police Chief Kurt Erkkila. Officer Steve Eskola, an August, 2025 graduate of NMU’s police academy, joined the Laurium Police Dept. in September. The department will soon be joined by another officer, bringing the department to full capacity.

LAURIUM – Village Manage Ian Lewis said the village police department will soon be fully staffed.

The village currently has a police academy candidate nearing completion of training, said Lewis.

“This will be our sixth officer on the roster,” he said, “which is more than we’ve had in years.”

Lewis said there is a lot of misinformation in the community currently regarding the size of the police force. He feels it is important for the public to know the Village Council and the administration are working hard to provide a more comprehensive police presence.

Village President John Sullivan agreed, saying there have been a number of questions from residents regarding the police force and its size, and if anything is being done.

“We’ve done that now,” he said. “We have three full-time officers, then the new recruit will be nearly full-time, and we have two others officers who pick up a day shift or a night shift.”

Those officers also fill in if and when a full-time officer is absent due to illness or other reason.

“The Laurium Village Police Department is going to be up to full capacity after the new recruit starts,” said Lewis.