A packed St. Paul city council chambers watched as Axel Henry, a 24-year veteran of the department, was unanimously approved by the council to be the next chief of police.
“I’m humbled by this opportunity. But I really look at it as a big responsibility,” Henry said, adding that he knows the city can only prosper if they all work together.
Henry assumes the role after most recently serving as director of the St. Paul Police Department's narcotics and human trafficking division.
The new chief also led efforts for the department's use of body cameras and spent more than 20 years as a use-of-force trainer.
Henry is now set to serve a six-year term in the role. He replaces longtime chief Todd Axtell, who retired this summer.
St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter, who nominated Henry, spoke at the meeting and said that he has been apart of the city for years working to keep it safe.
"We're all better off when police officers wake up in the morning knowing what's right in our community," Carter said.
St. Paul now joins its sister city in Minneapolis, which approved and swore in its new police chief, Brian O’Hara, earlier this month.
“Nobody gets to a position, an opportunity, or entrusted with this responsibility on their own. And I know we aren't going to be able to solve a lot of these problems on our own,” Henry said. “But by working together that’s my goal is that we bring this city together in a way that we know is possible.”
