John Cregan named Santa Rosa’s new police chief after nearly two months in interim role

John Cregan, who has led the Santa Rosa Police Department on an interim basis since May and been with the agency for 17 years, has been selected as the city’s next police chief.

City Manager Maraskeshia Smith appointed Cregan to the top job at Sonoma County’s largest city police force, with about 170 sworn officers and a budget of $68 million.

He takes over amid reports from the department of rising violent crime, with vehicle sideshows surfacing as a new concern, and with community outreach among his top priorities. He also faces the potential loss of millions of dollars in annual funding if a local public safety tax isn’t renewed and the long-term issue of retiree pensions eating up a bigger chunk of the department budget.

Cregan, 45, who as a captain oversaw the department’s special services division, said he was “honored and grateful” to take on the role. He has led the department since his predecessor, Ray Navarro, retired May 1 after nearly three years as chief.

“I look forward to building on the established legacy of the Santa Rosa Police Department, making it a place where people want to work and a department that reflects the needs and expectations of our community,” he said in a news release announcing the appointment.

Santa Rosa earlier this year hired a consultant to begin a national search for its next chief and sought community feedback on what traits residents and businesses wanted to see in that person.

The feedback pointed to Cregan as the best person for the job, Smith said.

A 23-year veteran of law enforcement, he joined the Santa Rosa force in 2005. In the past two years, he has led the department’s overhaul in its approach to handling behavioral health calls. He has also been credited with helping expand and rebuild relationships between the police department and a diversifying community.

“Over last couple of months as I’ve watched John in the community, with the department, overseeing diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, he has really stepped up and been the lead in all those areas and that’s what I’m looking for,” Smith said.

Cregan has a proven leadership track record, knows the department and community needs and has been a visible presence in Santa Rosa, she said. He is the fourth consecutive police chief chosen from within department ranks.

“We are so excited to have him step into that role,” Smith said.

Cregan will take on the permanent role July 3 and the city plans to hold a public swearing-in ceremony in the coming weeks.

He will oversee a total workforce of about 250 employees.

His annual salary will be $248,553.

‘Meaningful part of making a change’

Cregan said he was called to public service at a young age and knew before high school he wanted to become an officer.

“I felt like you could be a meaningful part of making a change in your community,” he told The Press Democrat.

He began his law enforcement career in 1999 in Novato.

In Santa Rosa, he has served in various roles, including as a motorcycle officer with the traffic division and a member of the hostage negotiations team, before being promoted to detective where he served in the gang crimes unit.

He worked his way up to captain where most recently he oversaw the special services division that houses the department’s investigation bureau, professional standards team and the recruitment, hiring and training teams.

Cregan spearheaded the planning and implementation of the city’s inRESPONSE mental health team, which responds to nonviolent emergencies related to mental health, homelessness and substance abuse, that launched in January.

The program is off to a strong start but Cregan would like to see it expanded. He also is looking to create a mental health officer position, an armed officer with training as a licensed clinical social worker who can respond to calls that inRESPONSE can’t.

During his first 90 days as chief, Cregan will outline a plan to reduce violent crime in the city, which the department has said is rising. There were 471 reported shootings and six homicides in 2021, while seven homicides have already occurred in the first six months of this year.

Cregan will be tasked with proactive enforcement of illegal sideshows and continue efforts to restore community trust following fallout from the department’s response to 2020 protests over police accountability and social justice.

Other top priorities include establishing data and intelligence-based policing techniques, addressing department changes to ensure equitable practices and expanding staff wellness programs, according to the city.

Longer term, Cregan will prioritize recruitment and retention and creating a department reflective of Santa Rosa. He has already started meeting with groups like the local branch of the NAACP, Los Cien Sonoma County and 100 Black Men to identify hiring barriers, he said.

Elevating community outreach

Cregan had long eyed the chief position and department leaders began preparing him for this next step, particularly in the last six months of Navarro’s tenure, he said.

In the past two months as interim chief he has met with city staff and residents, gathering feedback on changes people would like to see in the department and from the chief role, he said.

He pointed to his time in the gang unit as the foundation to how he approaches policing and he will use that experience as chief, he said.

His time there showed him police can’t solve public safety needs without prevention and intervention efforts, which require a community-wide effort, he said.

The gang unit experience helped him build relationships with residents and in schools, he said, and as chief he plans to be even more active in the city, paying particular attention to marginalized communities that have felt forgotten or targeted by police, he said.

“My goal is to be on the front porches of residents of Roseland and other areas of our community, talking to community members, being there in an area they’re comfortable with, and doing a better job of hearing some of those community concerns,” he said. “Not just hearing them, but actually taking meaningful steps to do something with that constructive criticism.”

Appointment a ‘no-brainer,’ mayor says

Filling the police chief role was one of the first tasks Smith took on after joining the city in January and Cregan’s appointment is the first top-level selection she’s made as city manager.

The city hired the firm Bob, Murray and Associates to lead the search for the next police chief that was expected to take up to six months. The firm began the process but city leaders ultimately decided to stop the search and appoint Cregan without interviewing other candidates.

The city capped spending at $25,000 to recruit for the position but expects to be billed just for initial work, according to the city.

Smith said feedback received from residents and stakeholders led her to choose Cregan.

“Everyone pointed to John,” she said. “You can’t let pressure or public opinion drive this decision … but as we’ve worked alongside each other he was the right person for the job.”

Cregan has the knowledge and skill of an officer and understands how to build relationships and why it’s important to the job, qualities needed in a police chief, Mayor Chris Rogers said.

It was a “no brainer” to tap him for the job and move quickly on the appointment so he could hit the ground running, and it shows the confidence city leaders and the police department have in his leadership, Rogers said.

Katrina Phillips, chair of the Sonoma County Commission on Human Rights, said Cregan has shown he is approachable and listens to community concerns and she looks forward to working with him, particularly on issues related to behavioral health.

“I’m extremely happy that Mr. Cregan is going to be chief,” she said. “I think this is a giant step in the right direction.”

Cregan has a master’s degree in law enforcement and public safety leadership from the University of San Diego. He graduated from Command College, a 14-month program from the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training that provides law enforcement leaders with training on trend forecasting and innovation to rethink policing.

He lives with his wife Angela and their two school-aged daughters in Santa Rosa.

Cregan hopes to remain in the role past retirement-age ‒ 50 for his generation of officers, and 55 for newer entrants in law enforcement ‒ envisioning a longer tenure than his past two predecessors to provide stability to the department.

“I feel very loved and supported here in this organization and it’s an organization I’m so proud to be a part of that I know I will never leave,” he said.

Staff Writer Emily Wilder contributed to this story. You can reach Staff Writer Paulina Pineda at 707-521-5268 or paulina.pineda@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @paulinapineda22.