x
Breaking News
More () »

John Hayden named police chief of SLMPD

Mayor Lyda Krewson and Department of Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards announced John Hayden will be the city's police chief.

ST. LOUIS- Mayor Lyda Krewson announced who will serve as the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department's chief.

In a press conference on Thursday, Mayor Krewson announced John Hayden as the new chief.

John Hayden currently serves as a Major commanding the North Patrol Division in the City of St. Louis. He has a Bachelor of Arts from Washington University in St. Louis and a Master of Arts in Management from Fontbonne. He is a 30-year veteran of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.

Hayden is a lifelong St. Louis resident. He plans to tackle crime reduction in the city in a holistic way by incorporating enforcement, community outreach, analysis and redistribution of resources, a more in-depth analysis of calls for service and crime trends, expanding the use of technology, early intervention and prevent, and more training for officers.

“John​ ​Hayden​ ​has​ ​served​ ​St.​ ​Louis​ ​with​ ​honor​ ​and​ ​distinction​ ​for 30​ ​years,”​ ​Mayor​ ​Krewson​ ​said.​ ​“He​ ​has​ ​a​ ​great​ ​track​ ​record building​ ​trust​ ​in​ ​the​ ​communities​ ​in​ ​which​ ​he's​ ​served.​ ​At​ ​this​ ​very critical​ ​time​ ​in​ ​our​ ​City,​ ​John​ ​will​ ​continue​ ​that​ ​exemplary​ ​service​ ​as​ ​our​ ​police​ ​chief.”

“John​ ​Hayden​ ​and​ ​his​ ​contributions​ ​to​ ​the​ ​St.​ ​Louis​ ​Police​ ​Department​ ​and​ ​to​ ​the​ ​community are​ ​respected​ ​and​ ​held​ ​in​ ​high​ ​esteem​ ​by​ ​a​ ​broad​ ​cross-section​ ​of​ ​the​ ​St.​ ​Louis​ ​community, including​ ​his​ ​peers​ ​in​ ​the​ ​law​ ​enforcement​ ​community,”​ ​Director​ ​of​ ​Public​ ​Safety​ ​Jimmie Edwards​ ​said.​ ​“He​ ​treats​ ​all​ ​people,​ ​whether​ ​law​ ​enforcement​ ​or​ ​the​ ​accused,​ ​with​ ​respect.​ ​I believe​ ​that​ ​his​ ​informed​ ​concern​ ​for​ ​our​ ​City​ ​will​ ​be​ ​a​ ​great​ ​asset​ ​in​ ​closing​ ​the​ ​trust​ ​gap between​ ​the​ ​police​ ​and​ ​citizens.”

“I​ ​know​ ​that​ ​our​ ​Police​ ​Department​ ​must​ ​change​ ​from​ ​within​ ​in​ ​order​ ​to​ ​earn​ ​the​ ​support​ ​of​ ​our citizens,”​ ​Edwards​ ​added.

As police commissioner, Hayden will earn $153,000 a year. He will oversee a department of 1,300 sworn officers, 400 civilian employees, and a yearly budget of $170 million.

Statement from the Board of the Ethical Society of Police

The Board of the Ethical Society of Police supports the decision to name John Hayden as the new chief of police for the city of St. Louis. We believe Chief Hayden is the right choice based on his documented history of being morally grounded and holding all officers accountable. Hayden is also a strong proponent of Community Oriented Policing and understands the importance of building broken relationships with our community. We will support Chief Hayden, but we will also hold him accountable for our community and our officers just like we've held previous Chief accountable.

Statement from the St. Louis Police Officers Association

The St. Louis Police Officers Association, the labor union that represents over 1,100 commissioned officers of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, praised the selection of John Hayden as Chief of Police today.

Mayor Lyda Krewson and Public Safety Director Jimmie Edwards announced Hayden's appointment as Police Commissioner and Chief of Police at a noon press conference today. Hayden, a thirty year veteran of the Department, had been the Major in charge of the North Patrol Division up until the time of his appointment as Chief. He was also a former commander of the Internal Affairs Division.

Union president Ed Clark applauded the selection. “Chief Hayden is widely regarded as a no-nonsense leader who is tough but fair; smart but compassionate,” Clark said. “The rank-and-file holds Chief Hayden in high regard and he has consistently shown a great deal of respect for our members and the union. This is a man we know we can work with. We also know that his selection will go a long way in restoring the community's trust in the police department,” Clark added.

Union business manager Jeff Roorda also commended the selection of Hayden. “Chief Hayden is one of those guys who always listens to every side of an issue and thoroughly considers the information he is provided with. He's been eminently fair in all of his dealings with the union but he is no pushover, not by any means. He can be counted on to do what he thinks is right for this city and this police department and that's all any of us can ask for from our leaders,” Roorda said.

Both Roorda and Clark took a moment to compliment interim Chief Larry O'Toole for a job well done during his tenure. “Colonel O'Toole shepherded the department through a challenging chapter in its history under the most difficult of circumstances. Larry showed his mettle and his leadership in stewarding this agency and we hope that he will stay on as Assistant Chief in order to ease the transition for Chief Hayden,” Clark said.

Lawrence O'Toole has been the acting police chief since April when Mayor Krewson took office and former chief Sam Dotson retired.

READ MORE: Six finalists were interviewed by Mayor Krewson and Jimmie Edwards earlier this month.

RELATED: Crowd disrupts St. Louis police chief town hall

Before You Leave, Check This Out