Poplarville swears in new Police Chief

At Tuesday’s meeting of the Poplarville Board of Aldermen and Mayor, Chad Dorn, a former Picayune Police Officer was sworn in as the new permanent Chief of Police for the Poplarville Police Department. In attendance to show their support for the newly appointed Chief were his mother and father Donald and Deborah Dorn, wife Valerie Dorn, and eldest son Chayse Dorn.

Chief Chad Dorn takes the oath of office with his wife Valerie (center) and Mayor Louise Smith

Chad began his career as a law enforcement officer 22 years ago with Picayune Police Department where he served for 17 years. In 2019, Dorn had the opportunity to serve the City of Waveland, MS. The move to Waveland was more than a transition for Dorn. It was a chance to serve the same city that his grandfather, the first Chief of Police for the City of Waveland, Donald Dorn Sr. had served Waveland as a Deputy when it was only a township.

During his tenure at the Waveland PD, Dorn served as a Lieutenant, the Patrol Commander, and spearheaded community outreach programs such as Coffee With A Cop, National Night Out Against Crime, and Fishing With The Fuzz. Newly appointed Chief Dorn stated that he was eager to be "proactive in the community outreach and increasing Officer and community engagement."

Later in the meeting, Chief Dorn stood before the board to present them with what the Poplarville PD has done since he took the position two weeks ago. Since then there have been three stops that resulted in drug arrests, two misdemeanor marijuana charges, and one felony charge for possession of methamphetamine.

Chief Dorn also utilized his time with the board to bring up two grants that would be used to help purchase much-needed equipment for the Poplarville Police Dept. The first grant is from the Mississippi Dept. of Public Safety, and would give the Poplarville Police Dept. an allotment of money to be used to update their current radios. After the meeting, Chief Dorn was asked how much would the grant cover the cost of new radios.

"We are just at the beginning stages for this grant, so an exact amount is uncertain."

The second grant would go towards procuring bulletproof vests for three Poplarville Officers who are currently without them. Chief Dorn said that the vests typically range in price from $700-$1000 each.

The board unanimously approved Chief Dorn to move forward with both grants.