TCNJ

35 SPRING 2024 Lieutenant Steve Troyano '98 Arlington County (Virginia) Police Department In his 23 years in the Arlington County Police Department, Troyano has seen it all. He directed traffic after a jetliner hit the Pentagon on September 11, 2001, and was called to serve during a series of sniper killings in and around Washington, D.C. in October 2002. And as supervisor in the Civil Disturbance Unit, he was part of one of the first mutual aid teams to arrive at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. But Troyano would like to be remembered for one particular story: He delivered a baby in the back seat of a car. "I studied law and criminal justice at TCNJ and got a master's degree in forensic science from George Washington University, but there are some things you are never prepared for," he says with a laugh. MITCHELL SAYS: It's important to address the sort of police wrongdoing we see reported because it can erode public confidence and hinder the ability of police to keep communities safe. When the legitimacy of police is in question, when it no longer exists, you no longer have community support. How can police officers be effective in fighting crime when the community does not trust them? Troyano chose law enforcement due to his desire to make a difference in his community. His work has grown more challenging since 2014, when tensions between police and residents of Ferguson, Missouri, erupted following the shooting death of Michael Brown, an unarmed Black man. Over the next decade, similar scenarios would play out in communities across the nation, often fueled by the preponderance of social media. "One of the hardest things is that my relationship with my community can be impacted by someone making a poor decision elsewhere," says Troyano. "The police–community relationship is the most effective tool we have. We need to invest our efforts in the next generation of officers to keep building those bridges with our community."

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