I’ve seen plenty of movies and reality shows about law enforcement, oftentimes featuring a detective working a crime scene late at night, gathering evidence with gloved hands. These movies and shows highlight the high-stakes aspects of the job.
The work that Concordia Police Department (CPD) Detective Emma Thyfault does looks a little different, but what I experienced while shadowing her for a day taught me how important law enforcement is for a small, rural community.
I entered the CPD station at the corner of West Sixth and Cedar streets, and Thyfault buzzed me into the back offices, where she was reviewing body cam footage for a welfare check that we would investigate later in the morning.
Thyfault has called North Central Kansas home for her entire life. She grew up in Jamestown, graduated from Concordia Junior/Senior High School, and later attended Barton Community College for paramedic training, where she achieved her degree.
Paramedic work interested her, and she wanted to be a first responder, but after some experience, she pivoted toward law enforcement.
I went with Thyfault on the welfare check of an elderly man who lived in a house with no heat, and at the time, it was early January.
On arrival, Thyfault held a conversation with the man and told him about some resources he could reach out to for assistance. The house was in poor condition, so Thyfault made a call to Adult Protective Services to see how the agency might be able to assist the man.
Just a month or two later, the man got into a new living situation where he had proper housing and care.
“I’m able to help someone during the worst time of their life, and they feel comfortable being open and honest with me,” Thyfault said. “I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure they get justice.”
Back at the office, Thyfault dug into the case files of a 13-year-old case that a resident had recently brought to her attention. Thyfault then began her usual long list of phone calls. She spoke to the County Attorney's Office about court records and evidence from the decade-old case.
After searching through some old records, Thyfault decided to call the original contact who brought the case to her attention. During the call, she took a few notes and added them to her report. Then it was time to move on to another case involving a minor.
Thyfault, Lt. Adam Sorell, and Chief Brent Gering are the three CPD contacts for cases involving minors. On this case involving neglect of minors, Thyfault spoke with the Department of Children and Families (DCF) to discuss information.
Recently, the CPD has handled numerous cases involving minors, and statistics reinforce the fact that investigations for crimes against children have increased in the area. Thyfault and her fellow officers see this increase as a sign of officers doing their job correctly.
“I think it’s just something that’s always been happening, and it’s only prevalent now because people are coming forward,” Thyfault said. “I think it’s always been the same, but we are just better at sifting through what’s happening online.”
She continued, “I think back in the day, before cell phones, they were burning them (child sexual abuse material) onto disks, they were sending in cameras, and they were having the films developed. I think it’s just easier for us to investigate now.”
In 2025, CPD investigated 52 cases that involved violence or exploitation of a minor. In just the first three months of the year, Thyfault said they’ve investigated another seven.
It was intriguing to see how Thyfault’s mind works when processing cases. She said this about a recent case involving a minor that she’s been working on: “It’s interesting how you see some cases play out because, with the [redacted name] case, we had a victim come forward and say, ‘A, B, C and D happened to me,’ and then I’m working that case, and we get called to the same residence where there’s a possible runaway there, so then we go find the runaway, and then that’s when everything opens up,” Thyfault said. “After interviews and everything is done, we do forensic interviews with our victims, then we get a search warrant for a cell phone, and some days I feel like a detective from the old days with red strings across an evidence board.”
Thyfault made numerous calls regarding the prosecution part of the case: the need to provide further information, to make a timeline connection, or to find a piece of evidence to include in the case. It was obvious that the CPD works closely with court authorities to build the best case possible against a suspect.
Since 2016, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation (KBI) has documented a decrease in overall crime in Concordia. But the crime rate for Concordia and Cloud County is still above average when compared to similarly sized communities and counties in Kansas.
The KBI Crime Index, a value based on the amount of crime per 1,000 residents, showed Cloud County had an index of 24.4 in 2016, while Brown County (with the town of Hiawatha) had an index of 22.6, and Marshall County (with the town of Marysville) had an index of 11.6.
In 2024, Cloud County had a crime index of 10.2; Brown County had an index of 10.7, while Marshall County’s index fell to 7.
From 2014 to 2024, the FBI reported that CPD officers handled 34 cases in which suspects were convicted of criminal sexual contact, which includes crimes against minors. In that same time frame, the Marysville Police Department reported 24 cases, while Hiawatha Police Department officers reported 24.
As I reflected on my experience with Thyfault, ‘resilience’ is the word that comes to mind. With a young child of her own at home, I imagine it can be difficult for Thyfault to bear witness to the worst kinds of treatment of children. It’s empowering to see the tenacity she shows in working cases to help the children of our community.
