When Portage Police Officer Janis Regnier was eight years old, she had people tell her that her goal of becoming a police officer was abnormal for a little girl. Fast-forward to 2013 and she has officially proved them wrong by becoming the first woman ever to be named the Lewis-Schmidt Law Officer of the Year for the state of Indiana.
“It makes me very proud to be the first one to walk through that door,” she said. “It kind of closes that part of it. We (women) can do anything that anybody else can do. To be named the first female officer of the year is overwhelming.”
The television shows “Charlie’s Angels” and “Quincy” inspired Regnier to want to become a police officer.
“Charlie’s Angels was the three women officers that went on to be private detectives,” she said. “It showed that girls can do that. Quincy was a medical examiner for Las Angeles and they would show all the cases that came through his office and how they would figure things out.”
For a while, Regnier put law enforcement in the back of her mind as she pursued a career as an EMT. However, she eventually worked her way back to her true passion. Regnier started with the civil defense in 1992, becoming a dispatcher in 1994 and eventually spent 11 years in patrol. She became Portage’s crime scene investigator in 2000 and became a detective in 2007. Now, almost 90 percent of her cases are child molest victims or sexual assault victims.
The Indiana Department of the American Legion selected her for the award after she put together a 25-page book encompassing her entire career.
“To be recognized for my service by a group of military heroes was quite overwhelming,” she said.
In addition to her job at the Portage Police Department, Regnier is an active member of the community as the President of the YMCA Board of Directors. She is in her seventh year on the board and the first of a two-year term as President. She started out as a board member before elevating herself to secretary and vice president before taking on her current role.
“It’s been a little more hectic than it normally is,” Regnier said. “We are currently in the search process for our new CEO. The CEO runs the day-to-day, but we oversee the umbrella that makes that happen. The last six months have been daily phone calls from the Y.”
Regnier spent a long time working at T-Shirts America and still enjoys doing graphic design for Police Department apparel. She has designed IDs, T-shirts and even squad cars.
The Portage resident, who has lived in the city since 1992, said the biggest role model in her life is her father.
“My dad didn’t finish high school so that he could help support the family, but yet he’s one of the smartest men I’ve ever met,” she said. “Clearly, you don’t need a piece of paper to tell you how smart you are.”