Woodland Police Department holds swearing-in ceremony for 6 new employees

Carlos Guerrero

Jan 5

Earlier this week, the Woodland Police Department staff grew by a half dozen when they welcomed aboard six new employees with a ceremonial swearing-in and badge-pinning ceremony.

The Wednesday evening ceremony, held inside the WPD's Community Room, located at 1000 Lincoln Ave., featured the introduction of the new staff members including Police Officers Erick Ayala Tamayo, Dominique Hines and Victor Martinez along with Records Specialist Jennifer Ramirez, CSO Crime Scene Analyst Araceli Romero and Chief's Assistant Dominique Bonino.

In front of dozens of family members and WPD staff, Chief Derrek Kaff began the ceremony by saying a few words as he usually does.

"We are gathered here in the spirit of honor, duty and community as we are about to swear in six new people to our department and family," Kaff began. "It's a really exciting time. There were a lot of challenges in 2023. We are only three days into 2024, and there are plenty more challenges locally and globally, but that is what law enforcement is all about. Law enforcement is also more than just the officers on the streets. It takes a whole team of folks back here at the station, and that's why we are welcoming these new individuals who are ready to step up and rise to this challenge and serve our community right here in Woodland."

Following brief bios on each new employee, Kaff brought up Woodland City Clerk Ana Gonzalez to administer the oath of office. After the oath, Kaff welcomed select family members to come up and ceremonially pin the badge on the three new officers, records specialist and crime scene analyst.

"The badge is that symbol that you can go anywhere in the country, and if you see this badge, you know that's a police officer or deputy," Kaff stated. "It's really appropriate that we would pick someone special in our lives to pin our badges."

Tamayo elected to have his father and mother pin his badge, Martinez and Romero both opted for their fathers to pin theirs, Hines elected to have his wife pin his badge and Ramirez had her partner pin hers.

Woodland Police Department Chief Derrek Kaff during a ceremonial swearing-in and badge-pinning ceremony on Wednesday, Jan 3 at the WPDs Community Room, located at 1000 Lincoln Ave. (Carlos Guerrero/Daily Democrat)

New Woodland Police Department Officers from left to right; Dominique Hines, Victor Martinez and Erick Ayala Tamayo. (Carlos Guerrero/Daily Democrat)

New Woodland Police Department employees from left to right; Chief's Assistant Dominique Bonino, Records Specialist Jennifer Ramirez and CSO Crime Scene Analyst Araceli Romero. (Carlos Guerrero/Daily Democrat)

Officer Martinez was born and raised in Arbuckle. He attended Pierce High School where his passion for football and track and field was sparked. He grew up as the middle child of three boys and took pride in following his older brother's footsteps in pursuing a career in law enforcement.

Martinez began working in Woodland for a local mom-and-pop shop. During this time, anticipating a career in law enforcement, he spoke with local police officers and participated in ride-alongs within different agencies
to gain experience while he waited to become age-eligible.

In 2022, ensuring no time was lost, Victor applied for the recruit position at the WPD. He attended the Sacramento Police Academy for the past seven months and recently graduated in December alongside Officer Ayala Tamayo.

Ayala Tamayo was born in the city of Woodland's Sister City, La Piedad, Michoacán, Mexico. At an early age, his parents migrated to the United States and he was raised in Huron, California. When he was 10 his parents opted to move to Sacramento. Ayala Tamayo attended Hiram W. Johnson High School and graduated in 2013.

He attended Kaplan College and graduated with an associate's degree in criminal justice.

In 2018, he attended the Basic Correctional Officer Academy in Galt. He graduated in 2019 and began his career as a Correctional Officer with the California Department Of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

After four years, he decided it was time for a change and pursued another law enforcement career, so he attended the Sacramento Police Academy and graduated in late December.

Officer Hines was born in Berkeley and was raised in El Sobrante. When he was 15, he moved to Tracy and graduated from Merrill West High School in 2007. After high school, he attended Contra Costa Community College in San Pablo, graduating with an associate's degree in political science.

He transferred to San Jose State University, graduating with a bachelor's degree. In 2017, Hines was hired by the Walnut Creek Police Department. He attended and completed the police academy in Pittsburg, California, and in May 2018, he was sworn in as a police officer.

In 2020, Hines was hired by the Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office and sworn in as a deputy sheriff. He was later assigned to the County Building Security Unit, where he worked for approximately two and a half years.

Ramirez was born and raised in San Mateo and bought a house in Sacramento exactly two years ago. She has two boys, Elijah and Gabriel.

She graduated from the College of San Mateo, earning her associate's degree in criminal justice and an associate's degree in sociology.

From June 2017 through May 2020, Ramirez worked for the San Mateo Police Department as a parking enforcement representative. She moved to Sacramento in 2021, working as an emergency medical dispatcher at American Medical Response until December 2023.

Romero was raised in Woodland. She has worked for the city of Woodland since 2021 in the Finance Department. Her biggest goal in life has always been to help youth and people in need within her community.

After graduating high school, she attended Sacramento State University and graduated in her fourth year with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice and a minor in sociology. Romero has two daughters and enjoys spending her free time exploring with them and being surrounded by family.

Bonino was born in South San Francisco, raised in Woodland, and graduated from Woodland High School.

Her career in the criminal justice field began with the Yolo County Superior Court, where she worked as a Legal Process Clerk for five years.

After spending most of her life in Woodland, she moved out of the valley and relocated to San Luis Obispo, where she worked as the commuter and access services coordinator for the Cal Poly San Luis Obispo Police Department.

She moved back to Woodland and worked as a legal process clerk for Yolo County Probation. After five years there and no further opportunities for advancement, she moved on to the city of Woodland Public Works Department as an administrative clerk.

While she has enjoyed becoming more knowledgeable about her hometown and getting to know the amazing staff, she accepted the opportunity for a promotion as the Chief's Assistant with the Police Department. She is excited to return to her criminal justice roots and learn more about the City staff.

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