Walsh introduced as first chief of Menifee's municipal PD

Pat Walsh was introduced Tuesday as the police chief in charge of the Menifee Police Department start-up. Menifee 24/7 photos by Kristen Spoon

By Doug Spoon, Editor

Law enforcement officials from across Southern California joined local dignitaries and residents Tuesday in celebrating an historic day in Menifee's history -- the day its first municipal police chief was introduced.

Pat Walsh, a veteran of 35 years in law enforcement, was most recently the police chief in Lompoc, where he received high praise for improving relations between police and the community, taking an innovative approach in dealing with the homeless, and strengthening the department's ability to fight crime effectively.

He becomes the first paid employee of the Menifee Police Department, whose creation was approved by the City Council last November. Walsh will spend the next 15 months directing all start-up phases of the department, which will begin serving the city on July 1, 2020. Until then, Menifee will continue to be served through its contract with the Riverside County Sheriff's Department.

Menifee will become one of the first cities in the state to transition from Sheriff's Department contract service to a municipal Police Department. According to the start-up plan budgeted for by the City, the Menifee PD will begin service with 55 sworn officers, putting nine officers per shift on the streets. Menifee is currently patrolled by five officers per shift through the Sheriff's Department.

"I would like to acknowledge the City Council for having the courage to do what they've done," Walsh said, referring to the significance of the transition in police services.

"I'm not from Menifee, but you need to know that everybody's talking about Menifee. Not just the police department, but about your city. I'm part of a lot of groups that are state-wide, such as the California Police Chiefs' Association. All of the chiefs talk and collaborate, and Menifee keeps coming up. Now that you're doing this ... it's a big deal. I feel a lot of pressure, but the city manager has put together a great team. The city staff has been incredible and they're on board with this.

"Here we have an opportunity to create the culture we want. When you take over a police department as the chief, you're happy about that, but it's a department you've inherited. That's not a bad thing, but here we get to build the department ourselves."

During his four-plus years as police chief in Lompoc, Walsh was given credit for getting out in the community along with his officers, getting to know residents and listening to their concerns. Walsh said he organized community walks, where residents were invited to meet him at specific locations and walk the neighborhood, talking with citizens.

He acknowledged that such interaction is critical in a city as large and diversified as Menifee, where concerns range from auto breaks-ins in neighborhoods of young families to concerns about crimes against the elderly in the Sun City retirement community to questions about how to deal with the homeless.

"We want officers that are innovative, tech savvy, who think outside the box and communicate a lot," Walsh said. "A lot can be done if you just talk to people.

"We need to go to as much as we can -- the Rotary Club, churches, Boys and Girls Clubs. We don't do our job without the community helping us. It's community policing. You won't hear me talking a lot about it, because we're just going to do it."

City Manager Armando Villa was responsible for the hiring of Walsh after a year-long feasibility study of the police transition, based on a report presented last year by consultant and retired police chief Tom Hicks.

"I'm here to tell you that at just about every step of the way, Pat surfaced to the top," Villa said about the interview process from among a pool of 49 candidates. "This is not an easy task. It requires a lot of skill sets, a lot of people coming together to make this happen. I want to give a shout-out to my staff, because they did a great job. I can't take all the credit."

Menifee Mayor Bill Zimmerman also acknowledged the significance of Tuesday's announcement and the entire police department start-up project.

"Today is one of those milestones along the way that myself, my City Council colleagues, and this management team had resolved to do," he said. "This is possibly the biggest decision this City Council in Menifee will ever make.

"After a comprehensive study and review, we realized we could accomplish two things: We could save the taxpayers money and we could improve the level of service. So it's time to shift gears now and give some encouragement and all the tools Chief Walsh is going to need to build a very top-notch police department for the people of Menifee."

Walsh will meet residents at a Town Hall meeting scheduled for April 23 at 6 p.m. at Kay Ceniceros Center. More such public meetings will be scheduled in the coming months.

Editor's note: You can view Menifee's exclusive interview with Chief Pat Walsh today on "Good Morning Menifee" on the Menifee 24/7 Facebook page.