WAUWATOSA- The five month search to replace former Wauwatosa Police Chief Barry Weber ends with the hiring of James MacGillis.
MacGillis is a former Captain with the Milwaukee Police Department who retired from MPD in January.
“We had a difficult decision to make because we had such great candidates,” Police and Fire Commissioner Dana Cichy said Thursday night. “My opinion is that MacGillis is the best for Wauwatosa’s future.”
According to a bio released from Wauwatosa, MacGillis is the current Drug Intelligence Officer-North Central HIDTA for the state of Wisconsin as part of the national Overdose Response Strategy spearheaded by the Office of National Drug Control Policy.
The other two finalists for the position were acting Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffery Norman and Milwaukee Police Captain David Salazar.
In a statement from the Wauwatosa Peace Officers Association, their board says:
“The WPOA welcomes James MacGillis as the new Chief of Police. We look forward to working with him in the future on the issues and challenges facing our community and police department. Chief MacGillis has an impressive background and strong ties to the City of Wauwatosa. We are confident in his ability to lead this department and are eager to continue to serve and protect the citizens of Wauwatosa under his command. We commend the members of the PFC for their diligent search and selection process that produced three very qualified candidates.”