Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department

The Chief of the Los Angeles Police Department is the head and senior-most officer to serve in the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD). The incumbent manages the day-to-day operations of the LAPD and is usually held by a four star officer.

Chief of the City of Los Angeles Police Department
Seal of the LAPD
Flag of the Chief of the LAPD
Incumbent Jim McDonnell since November 8, 2024 (2024-11-08)
Los Angeles Police Department
Status	Chief of police
Reports to	Board of Police Commissioners
Seat	Los Angeles County, California, U.S.
Appointer	Mayor of Los Angeles, with consent of city council.
Term length	5 years renewable
Formation	December 18, 1876
First holder	Jacob F. Gerkens
Salary	$307,291
Website	www.lapdonline.org

The chief of police is appointed by the mayor and reports to the Board of Commissioners.

List of police chiefs

Chief	Term began	Term ended	Notes
Jacob F. Gerkens	December 18, 1876	December 26, 1877	[1]
Emil Harris	December 27, 1877	December 5, 1878	[2]
Henry King	December 5, 1878	December 11, 1880	[3]
George E. Gard	December 12, 1880	December 10, 1881	[4]
Henry King	December 11, 1881	June 30, 1883	[5]
Thomas J. Cuddy	July 1, 1883	January 1, 1885	[6]
Edward McCarthy	January 2, 1885	May 12, 1885	[7]
John Horner	May 13, 1885	December 22, 1885	[8]
James W. Davis	December 22, 1885	December 8, 1886	[9]
John K. Skinner	December 13, 1886	August 29, 1887	[10]
P.M. Darcy	September 5, 1887	January 22, 1888	[11]
Thomas J. Cuddy	January 23, 1888	September 4, 1888	[6]
L.G. Loomis	September 5, 1888	September 30, 1888	[12]
Hubert H. Benedict	October 1, 1888	January 1, 1889	[13]
Terrence Cooney	January 1, 1889	April 1, 1889	[14]
James E. Burns	April 1, 1889	July 17, 1889	[15]
John M. Glass	July 17, 1889	January 1, 1900	[16]
Charles Elton	January 1, 1900	April 5, 1904	[17]
William A. Hammel	April 6, 1904	October 31, 1905	[18]
Walter H. Auble	November 1, 1905	November 20, 1906	[19]
Edward Kern	November 20, 1906	January 5, 1909	[20]
Thomas Broadhead	January 5, 1909	April 12, 1909	[21]
Edward F. Dishman	April 13, 1909	January 15, 1910	[22]
Alexander Galloway	February 14, 1910	December 27, 1910	[23]
Charles E. Sebastian	January 3, 1911	July 16, 1915	[24]
Clarence E. Snively	July 17, 1915	October 15, 1916	[25]
John L. Butler	October 16, 1916	July 16, 1919	[26]
George K. Home	July 17, 1919	September 30, 1920	[27]
Alexander W. Murray	October 1, 1920	October 31, 1920	[28]
Lyle Pendegast	November 1, 1920	July 4, 1921	[29]
Charles A. Jones	July 5, 1921	January 3, 1922	[30]
James W. Everington	January 4, 1922	April 21, 1922	[31]
Louis D. Oaks	April 22, 1922	August 1, 1923	[32]
August Vollmer	August 1, 1923	August 1, 1924	[33]
R. Lee Heath	August 1, 1924	March 31, 1926	[34]
James E. Davis	April 1, 1926	December 29, 1929	[35]
Roy E. Steckel	December 30, 1929	August 9, 1933	[36]
James E. Davis	August 10, 1933	November 18, 1938	[37]
David A. Davidson	November 19, 1938	June 23, 1939	[38]
Arthur C. Hohmann	June 24, 1939	June 5, 1941	[39]
Clemence B. Horrall	June 16, 1941	June 28, 1949	[40]
William A. Worton	June 30, 1949	August 9, 1950	[41] Interim Chief
William H. Parker	August 9, 1950	July 16, 1966	[42][43]
Thad F. Brown	July 18, 1966	February 17, 1967	[44]
Thomas Reddin	February 18, 1967	May 5, 1969	[45]
Roger E. Murdock	May 6, 1969	August 28, 1969	[46] Interim Chief
Edward M. Davis	August 29, 1969	January 16, 1978	[47][48]
Robert F. Rock	January 16, 1978	March 28, 1978	[49] Interim Chief
Daryl F. Gates	March 28, 1978	June 27, 1992	[50][51][52]
Willie L. Williams	June 30, 1992	May 17, 1997	[53][54]
Bayan Lewis	May 18, 1997	August 12, 1997	[55] Interim Chief
Bernard C. Parks	August 12, 1997	May 4, 2002	[56][57]
Albert Robles	May 7, 2002	October 26, 2002	[58] Interim Chief
William J. Bratton	October 27, 2002	October 31, 2009	[59][60]
Michael P. Downing	October 31, 2009	November 17, 2009	[61] Interim Chief
Charles L. Beck	November 17, 2009	June 27, 2018	[62][63]
Michel Moore	June 27, 2018	February 29, 2024	[64]
Dominic Choi	March 1, 2024	November 8, 2024	[65] Interim Chief
Jim McDonnell	November 8, 2024	Incumbent	[66]

See also