Chief James E. Craig - Portland Police Department

 I was born and raised in the city of Detroit, where I attended Cass Technical High and graduated from the Automotive Technology curriculum in June of 1974. Following graduation, I started work at Chrysler Corporation, where I worked on an assembly line while attending school at Lawrence Institute of Technology, majoring in Mechanical Engineering. As with most new hires in Detroit area factories, I was laid off.

 Following the layoff, I pursued a career as a police officer with the Detroit Police Department. In 1977, I was hired and following graduation from the police academy, I was assigned to walk a foot beat with another new rookie in one of Detroit’s toughest neighborhoods on the “graveyard” shift. After three and a half short years - and again common to working in the Detroit area - I was laid off along with 1500 other new police officers. During my short tenure, I had an opportunity to work a variety of assignments and continue my college education pursuing a degree in law enforcement from University of Detroit/Mercy College. Recognizing that I had a passion for law enforcement, I wanted to continue work in this field, so I decided to seek my dream in another city.

 After watching an episode of One Adam Twelve, I realized that Los Angeles would probably be a great place to continue my career in law enforcement. After a brief visit to Los Angeles, I applied and was subsequently hired by the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) and entered the police academy in January 1981. Following my graduation, I quickly assimilated into the LAPD, where I excelled in all of my assignments. My prior law enforcement experience was a great benefit and I won my first promotion after just two and a half years as a field training officer. Since that time, I have worked in many areas of the LAPD, rising through to the rank of Captain. The most rewarding aspect of my long career has been my work in community policing and enhancing youth initiatives inside the LAPD. During that time I was awarded the first Police Presidential Scholarship offered by West Coast University, where I completed my undergraduate degree in Business Management.

 After 28 years of service, 6 years at the command level, I retired from LAPD in April, 2009. My retirement was prompted by being selected as the Police Chief in Portland, Maine. I started this new position in May 2009. This has been a big move, going from the west to east coast, but after seven weeks this has been an exciting time in embracing my lifelong passion of public service.

I am married and have two children, a daughter 26, residing in Atlanta, Georgia, and a son 14, residing in Southern California. In my spare time, I am currently pursuing a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Phoenix and enjoy as a hobby Classic Muscle Cars.