DEARBORN, Mich. (WWJ) – The city of Dearborn is set to get a new police chief along with a new mayor at the start of the New Year.
Mayor-elect Abdullah H. Hammoud announced Monday that Commander Issa Shahin will be appointed Dearborn Police Chief effective Jan. 1. He will succeed Ronald Haddad, who has served as the city’s top cop since December 2008.
While Shahin will assume a new role, he’s certainly not new to the department. A 23-year veteran of the Dearborn Police Department, Shahin has served as executive commander for the last three years.
Prior to that, Shahin held several positions throughout the department since joining in 1998.
Hammoud – who was elected in November, becoming the first Arab-American mayor of Dearborn, which has a predominant Middle Eastern and Muslim population – says Shahin has “a strong track record and good rapport within the department.”
“He’s committed to building a trusting relationship with residents and delivering equitable policing in a way to best meet today’s demands in community policing. I am confident he will deliver the transparency and accountability residents expect while positioning our police officers for success.”
Shahin says he’ll have a lot of work to do after taking office at the start of 2022, despite years of progress in the city.
“We’ve made progress in the department over the past several years, but there’s a lot of work to do to strengthen our relationship with residents and incorporate the latest policing practices to best serve the city,” Shahin said. “I look forward to working with the new mayor to address the concerns of residents in a meaningful way and tackle key issues such as reckless driving and mental health for residents and first-responders.”
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Shahin has a bachelor’s degree in political science and master’s degree in homeland security and emergency management from Eastern Michigan (EMU). He also graduated from the EMU School of Police Staff and Command’s Executive Leadership program.
Haddad leaves the department after a nearly 50-year career in law enforcement, which began with the Detroit Police Department in 1973. He retired from DPD in 2007 before assuming the role as Dearborn Police Chief.
“Chief Haddad has served the city of Dearborn honorably for more than a decade, working hard to increase public safety and keep our neighborhoods and residents safe,” said Mayor-elect Hammoud. “The city is thankful for his commitment to the job and his years of public service.”