By RYAN SKAITH
Northwest Missouri will soon welcome five new state troopers to the region.
Capt. Shawn P. Skoglund, commanding officer of Troop H in St. Joseph, says the officers are members of the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s 124th Recruit Class and graduated from the Law Enforcement Academy on Dec. 19, 2025.
Trooper Matthew J. Dorrell, a Marceline native, will serve Zone 4, covering Grundy, Livingston, and Mercer counties. A 2023 graduate of Marceline R-V, Dorrell joined the Missouri National Guard in 2022, where he continues to serve as a heavy equipment operator. He previously worked as a lawn care specialist for Lawn Boyz in Bucklin.
Trooper Delaney K. Dunkin, of Norborne, has been assigned to Zone 7, serving Caldwell and Clinton counties. Dunkin graduated from Norborne R-8 in 2023 and earned an associate degree from Metropolitan Community College-Maple Woods in 2024. Before joining the Patrol, she served as a communications officer for Ray County 911 in Richmond.
Trooper Raul Hernandez, a native of Marshall, is assigned to Zone 10, covering Daviess and DeKalb counties. Hernandez graduated from Marshall High School in 2017 and earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Missouri Valley College in 2021. He previously served as a police officer with the Marshall Police Department.
Trooper Noah M. Newland, of Queen City, will serve Zone 2, covering Nodaway and Worth counties. A 2022 graduate of Schuyler County R-1, Newland attended Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville. Prior to the Academy, he worked as a sales associate for Dollar General in Maryville.
Trooper Lucas N. Reynolds, a Chillicothe native, joins Trooper Dorrell in Zone 4, serving Grundy, Livingston, and Mercer counties. Reynolds is a 2023 graduate of Chillicothe High School and previously worked as a corrections officer for the Missouri Department of Corrections.
Sgt. Shane Hux, with Troop H in St. Joseph, says, “The academy is 25 weeks long and kind of like a military boot camp with college academics on top of it.”
Hux says the recruits learn everything about the history of Missouri and the highway patrol, traffic crash investigation, DWI enforcement, and tactical driving.
“They will spend approximately four months with a field training officer for several different phases. It’s like you have to learn to crawl before you walk,” Hux noted.
The new recruits are scheduled to report for duty Jan. 5, 2026.