Michael Werges is seeking election to a position in Eureka that appears to be his destiny.
The Eureka Police captain and assistant chief of police has announced his plans to run city marshal this April. According to Eureka’s municipal code, whoever is elected city marshal will serve as the Police Department’s chief for a four-year term.
Chief Michael Wiegand, who has been elected city marshal every four years since 1987, is not seeking reelection in April.
“(Werges) is very smart, talented, well-educated, and he has the common sense and experience to do that job,” Wiegand, 69, of Eureka said. “For years, he and I have been planning to have him take over.”
Werges, 50, of Eureka said it is humbling to seek election to the only department he has ever worked for in 27 years as a police officer and that he has had a relationship with since attending Eureka High School.
“I have worked my entire life for this,” he said. “I think the main thing I like to say is I grew up here understanding what community means. I never wanted to work anywhere else.
“I like to think my accomplishments and reputation here speak for themselves. I am not just a person throwing their name in the hat in the hopes of becoming the next police chief. I have worked my entire adult life to get to this point. I hope and pray that the citizens recognize that.”
Mayor Sean Flower has shown his support for Werges by agreeing to be the captain’s treasurer for the campaign.
“It is a little unusual move; I usually try to stay out of the other races,” Flower said of being part of Werges’ campaign. “In this situation, I have worked with Mike so much that I felt strongly that I wanted to try to support him. I wanted to make sure everybody knew where I stood on it.”
Werges said even though the current chief and mayor are backing him, he is not taking anything for granted. No one else has declared their intentions to run for city marshal.
“It boils down to the citizens and how they feel. I really like to think they recognize the hard work, respect and amount of dedication I have given to this city my whole adult life,” he said.
Eureka bred
Werges said his relationship with the Eureka Police began in 1989 when he became a high school mentor in the DARE, the drug-resistance program for elementary school children, and joined the Eureka Police Explorers group.
“At the age of 15, I said this is something I wanted to do,” Werges said of a law-enforcement career.
Werges, who played football at Eureka High, graduated in 1992 and played two years for the Southwest Missouri State University football team before nagging injuries ended his playing career. Southwest Missouri is now Missouri State University
He earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology with a minor in criminal justice at Southwest Missouri and graduated from the police academy in November 1997.
When he graduated from the police academy, Werges said there were no open positions with the Eureka Police, but he decided to join the department as an unpaid reserve officer.
“I knew at 23 this is where I wanted to be,” he said. “I had to make a decision to go where they would pay me or work here for free. I made the decision to come work for free.”
Werges said he completed his three months of field training while working as a reserve officer, and he nearly had his plans to be a full-time Eureka Police officer derailed in March 1998.
While working as a reserve officer, a drunk driver rammed into the police car Werges was driving near the intersection of Hwy. 109 and I-44.
“I always joke that I almost took myself out before I got a paycheck,” Werges said. “He hit me about 50 mph on my driver’s side door. That night, chief came to the hospital to be there with me and my family.”
The next month, Werges was hired as a full-time Eureka Police officer.
He then worked his way up the ranks, becoming a police K-9 officer from 2004 until 2019. He was partnered with two police dogs, Riki and Reno.
Werges and Riki won several awards from the German Shepherd Dog Club and United States K-9 Association.
Werges and Reno were named the top narcotics team by the German Shepherd Dog Club of St. Louis in 2013. Werges received the North American Police Work Dog Association (NAPWDA) Trainer of the Year award in 2017.
Werges held many prominent roles in the NAPWDA, and he organized the group’s annual national workshops to be held in Eureka in 2007, 2010, 2014 and 2017.
Werges was promoted to sergeant in 2016 and supervised a squad of five officers. Four years later, as a lieutenant, he oversaw the uniform patrol, which includes four sergeants and 16 patrol officers.
He was named captain in July 2023.
“Early in my career, I recognized being the chief is something I wanted and aspired to do,” Werges said. “All of the chiefs did what I did, starting at the bottom and working their way up. We believe that is our recipe for success.”
Werges also continued his law enforcement education while with the Eureka Police.
He earned a master’s degree in sociology with an emphasis on criminology from Lincoln University, graduated from Missouri Police Command College and graduated from the FBI National Academy.
“He has really stepped up and prepared himself,” Flower said of Werges. “It is a nice mix that he is a local guy with a lot of ties to the community, and he is more than qualified. At some point, he was going to be a chief whether it would be here or somewhere else. We are lucky we have a slot for him.”
Election
Candidates may file to run in the April 8, 2025, general election from Dec. 10 through Dec. 31.
If Werges is unopposed, he would be named city marshal and then chief of police. Eureka’s Board of Aldermen set the police chief’s salary each year.
Eureka has only had three police chiefs in its history.
Charles Branson was first elected to the post on June 1, 1958. Robert Maness, who had been the assistant chief since 1966, was elected in April 1985
After Maness retired in 1987, Wiegand was elected to the position.
“It is all about stability here,” Wiegand said.
“It is all about the people we serve. It is mutual respect and knowing what the community wants.”
Werges said he understands the importance of connecting with community members and would want to continue that legacy established by the three prior chiefs.
“The chief has to be a community leader,” he said. “What makes me qualified for this job is I have the formal education to be a police chief, and I have the institutional knowledge of our agency and history of the agency.
“Eureka is not just about those of us who grew up here, but it is also about welcoming new people into our community. It is important that a person who has been here their whole life or a person who has been here for a week will get my attention the same.
“Everyone is a community member and valued.”