Troy Police Chief To Step Down On March 31

By Charlie Feldman

cfeldman@timestribunenews.com

Troy Police Chief Brad Parsons is retiring at the end of the month.

The City Council accepted his resignation at its Monday, March 1 meeting. As of April 1, assistant chief Brent Shownes will serve as interim chief until the new mayor appoints someone to the position in May.

Allen Adomite, the current mayor, spoke of his impact on the role of law enforcement in Troy.

“He really stressed becoming a department where our officers go out of the car and interact with the community,” he said. “It’s great for our officers and it’s great for the public.

“And I think that time and time again we’ve seen a stronger and stronger and stronger bond between the community and our police department,” he said.

Other additions Parsons brought to the force were the assistant chief position, the K-9 unit, the police motorcycle, special events and student resource officers in elementary schools,

“I’ve been doing my job for twenty-plus years” said City Attorney Fred Keck, “and I have never worked with a more capable person than Brad Parsons. It’s really difficult to be a supervisor and an advocate for the guys at the same time in his position. And we’ve dealt with some messes and we’ve dealt with some good stuff. And we are losing a real valuable asset here at the city. I don’t think the public appreciates what a good job he’s done. And I appreciate it.”

After the vote, Parsons received a standing ovation from everyone in the room.

“Thank you, Brad,” said the mayor. “It’s been absolutely awesome.”

The chief has spent 33 years in law enforcement – more than 25 with the Illinois State Police where he became district commander and the last seven years as chief in Troy.

He plans to move South after his retirement..

“The most memorable thing to me is the officers I got to work with here,” Parsons said. “And the support from the community. Coming here after twenty-five years with the State Police, just the overwhelming community support from the aldermen and the quality officers we have here in Troy. That’s the most memorable thing I’ll take with me.”

The next City Council meeting will be held on Monday, May 15 at 7:30 p.m. in City Hall Chambers.