Santa Barbara s police chief to retire in 2021
City of Santa Barbara
and last updated 2020-12-14 18:50:42-05
Santa Barbara Police Chief Lori Luhnow is retiring.
Chief Luhnow announced Monday that her last day on the job will be Feb. 13, 2021.
Luhnow became Santa Barbara s first female police chief in 2016 and has spent a total of 32 years in law enforcement.
Before coming to Santa Barbara, Luhnow was a captain with the San Diego Police Department.
While the city conducts a nationwide recruitment for a new chief, Bernard Barney Melekian will take over as the Interim Chief of Police.
Melekian is currently the Assistant County Executive Officer for the County of Santa Barbara.
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In a statement condemning Floyd’s death, Luhnow acknowledged law enforcement’s contribution to the marginalization of disadvantaged groups.
“It is the responsibility of current law enforcement leaders to take measures to prevent those actions from occurring,” she wrote.
“We are first peace officers. That comes with the understanding that we are part of the community, not separate of it,” Luhnow said at one of the protests, announcing that the department is “committed to the development of a citizen review process.”
During her time at SBPD, Luhnow created new officer recruitment strategies to address staffing concerns at the department, according to the city.
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