Marvin Tahmahkera

Marv entered the law enforcement profession when he became a police cadet and desk officer for the City of Palos Hills, Illinois Police Department in 1987. In 1988, Marv graduated with an Associates of Applied Sciences degree in Criminal Justice from Moraine Valley Community College in Palos Hills, Illinois. From 1989 to 1991, he worked in the private security industry for various companies in Illinois and Arizona.

In 1991, Marv joined the Arizona State University Police Department in Tempe, Arizona as a police officer. In 1996, Marv was promoted to the rank of sergeant. He held positions as: Patrol sergeant, Field Training Program sergeant and was the police department’s Training Coordinator. In 2013, Marv retired from the Arizona State University Police Department and is currently working as a police officer with the Maricopa County Community College District Police Department.

Marv has taught classes and provided instruction at the Arizona Law Enforcement Training Academy, the Glendale Community College Police Academy, the Arizona Law Enforcement Academy and the Mesa Police Academy. He is a subject matter expert in Patrol Procedures and Operations through the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training (AZPOST) Board.

Marv was a member of the American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers until the organization disbanded in 2006. In 2005 and 2006, Marv was a contract instructor for the Criminal Justice Institute in Little Rock, Arkansas teaching “Field Training for the 21st Century”. In 2013, Marv became an adjunct instructor for the Lamar Institute of Technology Regional Police Academy in Beaumont, Texas.

Marv holds AZPOST specialty instructor in high risk vehicle stops, defensive tactics, impact weapons and chemical agents. He specializes in officer safety and survival training. Marv has been recognized as an instructor in mobile field force and crowd control response tactics. Marv also conducts training on the topics of building searches, low light survival, high risk entry and active shooter response.

Marv holds provider certifications in Basic Life Support, Tactical Emergency Casualty Care, Tactical Combat Casualty Care, Pre-Hospital Trauma Life Support and Emergency Medical Responder. He is also an instructor in Stop the Bleed.

Marv is a NAMI Crisis Intervention Team police officer; and, is currently a member in good standing with the Arizona Tactical Officers Association and the National Tactical Officer’s Association.

Marv truly believes in the concept of "Always a student, sometimes an instructor". He has a passion for knowledge transfer and his congenial nature shines through in every class he teaches.