Rehaume retiring as Othello PD chief
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 9 months, 1 week AGO
Othello Police Chief Dave Rehaume, right, is presented with a plaque by Mayor Shawn Logan, left, thanking him for his 36 years of service to the city. Rehaume announced Monday that he would retire effective Nov. 30.
COURTESY PHOTO/CITY OF OTHELLO
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | November 25, 2025 6:35 PM
OTHELLO — Aaron Garza has been appointed as interim chief of the Othello Police Department, effective Nov. 30, when current Othello PD Chief Dave Rehaume retires. Rehaume announced his retirement Monday. Mayor-elect Ken Johnson said that how the city will fill the permanent job is still to be determined.
“That’s going to be a council decision,” Johnson said.
While the mayor appoints certain city officials, the council confirms those appointments, Johnson said.
Garza was appointed to the interim job during the Othello City Council meeting Monday.
Rehaume, a 36-year veteran of the department, was hired as chief in 2023. An Othello native, he worked as a dispatcher before being hired as a patrol officer in 1989. He was named assistant chief in 2015.
Garza, too, is an Othello native and was named assistant chief in 2023. He joined OPD in 2006 after service in the US Marine Corps. He was promoted to sergeant in 2011; he became a school resource officer in 2020.
According to a city release, Rehaume did not want a public announcement of his retirement, so Mayor Shawn Logan presented him with a plaque thanking him for his service to the city prior to the council meeting.
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