DECATUR - Cody J. Rose, 22, wants to attack crime at its roots.

Tucker Tool, 24, wants to help people who are plagued by domestic violence and drug abuse.

The two idealistic young men are the newest members of the Decatur Police Department.

"We are very pleased to have the two new officers," said James Chervinko, deputy chief of the patrol division, after a swearing-in ceremony at the Decatur Civic Center. "They are both intelligent young men who will do a good job for us."

Both recently completed college degrees related to law enforcement, and both have roots in Central Illinois.

On their first day as police officers, they were enthusiastic about serving Decatur residents.

"Crime prevention is close to my heart," said Rose, a Peoria native who earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Taylor University in Fort Wayne, Ind.

While Rose attended Taylor, he directed a faith-based mentoring program, connecting at-risk youths with college students. The program focused on children of prison inmates. "Children of incarcerated parents are six times more likely to be incarcerated," Rose said.

Rose also served as a campus safety officer at Taylor and an intern with the Peoria Police Department. A graduate of Peoria Christian High School, Rose also lived in Geneva and the San Francisco area, as his family followed his father's career moves for Caterpillar Inc.

"In Decatur, I hope to be part of crime prevention initiatives," Rose said. "I'm really looking forward to working in Decatur."

Tool, a St. Joseph native, also prefers to work in an environment where serious conflict is part of the daily routine.

"My choice is to be a city cop," Tool said. "I want to be on city police because you do domestic calls, drug problems."

Tool, who earned a bachelor's in law enforcement and justice administration at Western Illinois University, said he wants to be an officer to help people.

He promised to receive no pleasure from pulling over a motorist who makes an innocent mistake.

"We're called for a reason," Tool said. "Not so much to write tickets, but I know that's a part of it. I never want to be the bad guy. I don't want to ruin your day because I've been there."

Tool was training to become a nurse at Parkland College, but after working at a nursing home, he considered other options. A ride-along in a Champaign police car opened his eyes to a new career path.

"I knew then and there, I wanted to be a police officer," Tool said. He later worked as an intern with the Champaign Police Department.

Tool and Rose will begin a 12-week training program Sunday at the Police Training Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Afterward, they will return to Decatur to learn more about police work.

"They have about 10 months of training to look forward to," Chervinko said. "They seem to be very excited about it."

With the two newest members, the number of officers is at the highest level in many years.

"We have 168 police officers, including 4 overhires," Chervinko said. "We are fully staffed at 164. The city council has allowed us to overhire."

Chervinko explained that the hiring of more officers than the targeted staffing number allows the department to be at or near full strength when officers retire.

"We have six to eight planned retirements in the coming calendar year," Chervinko said. "We have been playing catch-up for many years, hiring after the retirements. We are trying to get out in front of it."

hfreeman@herald-review.com|421-6985