CALIFORNIA—On Tuesday, November 12, the Los Angeles Police Department issued a press release announcing that there will be a swearing-in of the new Los Angeles Police Chief, Jim McDonnell on Thursday, November 14, at 8:00 a.m. The event will take place at Elysian Park, 1880 Academy Drive in Los Angeles.
The Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass will preside over the affair with city and community dignitaries in attendance.
Chief Jim McDonnell is a 40-year veteran of the public safety profession, and according to the press release, he is, “the first to serve in senior executive leadership positions in the three largest policing agencies in Los Angeles County: The Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department (LASD), the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD), and the Long Beach Police Department (LBPD).” And “During his tenure, all three agencies saw a reduction in crime, and improved police-community relations.”
Chief McDonnell has served as Vice President of the Major County Sheriffs of America, President of the California Peace Officers’ Association, President of the Los Angeles County Chiefs of Police, board member of the Peace Officers’ Association of Los Angeles County; a member of the Major Cities Chiefs Association, a member of the California Commission on Peace Officers’ Standards & Training (POST) and has earned the respect of his peers.
McDonnell earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice at Anselm College in Manchester, New Hampshire, and earned his master’s in public administration from the University of Southern California (USC).
He graduated from the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Executive Institute and completed other executive education programs at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government.
According to a 2014 biography of then Sheriff McDonnell, he and his wife Kathy are from Long Beach and have two daughters, Kelly who was attending law school at the time, and Megan who was pursuing a graduate degree in film.