PHOTO: Three Victoria Police Department officers were promoted Oct. 27 during a private ceremony at the Victoria College Emerging Technology Complex. Shown from left are Sgt. Jacob Garza, Deputy Chief Clay Fetters and Lt. Jason Martin.
The Victoria Police Department has chosen a new deputy chief who has held a variety of roles during his 15-year career with the department.
Deputy Chief Clay Fetters was sworn into his new position Oct. 27 during a private ceremony at the Victoria College Emerging Technology Complex attended by local officials, law enforcement and family members.
“I look forward to supporting Chief Young’s goals for the department and supporting our employees,” Fetters said. “We have the best officers and civilian employees in the region, and we can accomplish great things. I am excited about the future of the department and doing everything I can to work with the command staff and our employees to keep improving.”
Deputy Chief Fetters’ law enforcement career began in 2003 with the Gonzales Police Department. He joined the Victoria Police Department in 2008. In the SWAT team, he was an entry team member, sniper, team leader and commander. In the Investigations Division, he worked with juvenile assaults, runaways and the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. He has also held supervisory roles with the Special Crimes Unit, the Crime Reduction Unit and the Training and Recruitment Unit. He was promoted to lieutenant and assigned as the patrol watch commander for A Company in 2018. He has held the lieutenant position with the Support Services Division. He was promoted to captain in September 2022 and assigned as the patrol division commander. In August 2023, he was transferred to the Criminal Investigations Division.
Fetters has a bachelor’s degree in social and criminal justice. He is a graduate of the Leadership Command College of the Bill Blackwood Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas. He is also a graduate of the FBI National Academy.
Fetters has over 24 years of military service; he holds the rank of major as the company commander for the Training Center and Garrison Command at Camp Swift in Bastrop.
More promotions among high-ranking officers
Two more Victoria Police Department officers were promoted during the Oct. 27 ceremony.
Sgt. Jacob Garza joined the Victoria Police Department in December 2014 after he completed his law enforcement training at the Victoria College Police Academy. Garza started his career with the department as a patrol officer. Later, he transitioned to the role of field training officer, where he served as a senior patrol officer and FTO until 2021. That year, Garza joined the K-9 Unit and completed the Basic Police K-9 Handlers Course with his partner, Hummer. Garza and Hummer have served in the K-9 Unit since August 2021. In September of 2023, Garza was appointed to the role of interim sergeant. He holds a TCOLE Intermediate Peace Officer Certificate.
Lt. Jason Martin joined the Victoria Police Department in June of 2005. His roles with the department include SWAT operator, Honor Guard member, patrol officer, school resource officer at Memorial High School, Special Crimes Unit detective and Motor Vehicle Theft Unit detective. In June 2015, Lieutenant J. Martin was promoted to sergeant and was assigned to the Second Platoon. He was later transferred to the Special Crimes Unit before being assigned to Company C as the Highway Interdiction Team sergeant. He holds a TCOLE Master Certificate and graduated from the Leadership Command College of the Bill Blackwood Law Enforcement Management Institute of Texas.