Chief Floyd Simpson today announced the promotion of Captain John Houston to the position of Commander, effective Monday May 28^th.    Houston fills the vacancy created by the recent promotions of Commanders Mark Schauer and Mike Markle to Assistant Chief, and will join current Commanders Heidi Frese, Santiago Escalante, and Todd Green.   Captain Houston is a 32-year veteran of the CCPD and is currently in charge of the Department’s Training Division.     Captain Houston has extensive experience within the department, serving as a patrol officer, narcotics investigator, and on the DEA task force.  As a supervisor, Captain Houston has served in the Uniform Division as a Field Lieutenant and District Captain, as Uniform Division Executive Officer, as Criminal Investigation Division Executive Officer, and as Narcotics Vice Investigations Division Executive Officer.   He is scheduled to graduate with a Bachelor’s Degree in June from St. Leo’s University, and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, one of the country’s most prestigious training schools for Police Managers.  A promotion ceremony will be held at 8:15 AM Tuesday May 29^th  in the Chief’s Conference Room at Police Headquarters.

Coinciding with his announcement of Captain Houston’s promotion, Chief Simpson today unveiled the department’s new organizational structure.   As previously outlined by Chief Simpson,  this new organizational structure divides the Department into three separate Bureaus; Operations, Investigations, and Administration, each commanded by an Assistant Chief.  Assistant Chief Jesse Garcia will be in charge of the Operations Bureau, Assistant Chief Mark Schauer will supervise the Administration Bureau, and Assistant Chief Mike Markle will head up the Operations Bureau.  This structure groups units with similar functions and goals under the same command and will ensure that important operations such as recruiting and training will are given the attention they deserve.  The new organizational structure takes effect  Monday June 4th, in order to provide everyone with sufficient time to transition into their new positions.    Effective on that date, Commander Frese will take over the Uniform Division, Commander Escalante will assume command of the Criminal Investigations Division, Commander Green will transition to the Commander of Support Services, and Commander Houston will take charge of the newly created Personnel Development Division.    Chief Simpson stated that he strongly believes this new organizational structure will maximize the talents of the department’s work force, provide for consistent, cohesive leadership, and ensure accountability at all levels of the organization.