SHAFTER, Calif. (KERO) — Milligan was pinned as the department's Chief in early December after a 13-month stint as the interim Chief. We joined the newly pinned chief for a ride-along through Shafter to learn more.
- Milligan noted the bulk of his mornings start early, working to ensure that he makes a note of all of the positives from the day and night before during morning meetings and individual conversations with members of the department.
- Over the last decade, Shafter has grown by over 3,000 residents according to Census data, and Milligan said he believes his department is in good place as the city continues to grow, noting they'll likely need to continue to expand over time to grow in tandem with the city.
- Milligan also said over his 20+ year tenure with the Shafter Police Department, he said he's been touched by the community's investment in, now, his department and he hopes to repay the favor in kind.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Earlier this month, the City of Shafter saw a familiar face pinned as the city's chief of police. I'm Sam Hoyle, your Shafter neighborhood reporter, and I went on a ride along with Chief Randy Milligan to learn more about the 20-year veteran of the department and what he hopes to accomplish as he starts his new position as police chief.
"Charles one, show me ten eight with a civilian ride along."
"For the most part. You know, I'll come in to work at about five, 530 every morning, and start off at the police department. And, you know, just meet and greet with the with the staff members, and had a little face time with the chief and see how everything's going, see how they're doing. Like to give atta boys at that time to the to the patrol staff that did a good job, as well as the dispatchers who dispatch well that night, and we get daily reports of the activity from patrol, and so I like to come in and talk to them about it and just interact with the patrol and just say good morning and start off everybody's day that way."
According to US Census Data, Shafter's population has grown handily, going from nearly 17000 residents to nearly 20000 between 2010 and 2020, with estimates showing another 10% growth from 2020 to now. We asked Milligan how he feels about scaling the department to go with the city's growth, from his perspective, they're ahead of the curve.
"I have this old saying that if you're thinking about doing some changes or doing something, it's already too late, you really need to implement this stuff and get ahead of it. And I believe our city council is really a forward thinkers when it comes to that," said Milligan. "I think as long as we're developing our current staff for the Shafter police model and giving them the equipment from the cars to the body-worn to increasing our drone program, that we're on the right track."
To reiterate from our previous story on Milligan's pinning, he's held every rank as a member of the Shafter Police Department, starting from an officer to now chief. For him, the 20 years of experience gives him a unique view of what the city cares about.
"This town is very prideful. Two things I found that they take pride in is: their football teams and their police department. They know that they live in a safer community, and that is just so rewarding to know that you have a community that trusts their police department and knows that if somebody's gonna come to Shafter and commit a crime, we're gonna catch you."
In talking with Milligan he said some of the goals across his tenure are to continue to maintain the city's reputation as a safe community and the department's stature as a respectable law enforcement agency here in Kern County.
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