Longtime Decatur Police Chief Mike Booker Announces Retirement

DECATUR, GA — The city of Decatur's police chief will retire in April after more than 30 years with the Decatur Police Department and 15 years as the police chief, per a city news release Friday.

Police Chief Mike Booker first joined the Decatur Police Department in 1990, serving almost 10 different positions. His prior roles include: patrol officer; field training officer; patrol supervisor; investigator; supervisor over the criminal investigations division; instructor; patrol division commander; and deputy police chief, the release said.

He was appointed police chief in June 2006. Deputy Chief Scott Richards will serve as the acting police chief while the city conducts a recruitment process for a full-time hire, the release said.

“It has been an honor and privilege to have worked with so many outstanding and professional officers during my career. They are some of the most dedicated and salt of the earth people that I have ever met," Booker said in the release. "I have also been fortunate to have worked with and for many Decatur employees over the past 30 years. I am so thankful and appreciative of the members of this community and the partnerships and friendships that we have developed over the years. They have definitely helped make our department what it is today.”

In addition to his various positions within the department, Booker also instituted changes to meet staffing challenges, oversaw the department earn state accreditation and "created a culture of community policing with an emphasis on integrity, accountability and empathy," the release said.

The city said Booker was known for giving out his cell phone number to residents and encouraging the community to call him directly not only if they saw officers under his command doing something questionable, but also if they observed them doing something good.

Booker was also selected to participate in the state Police-Community Trust Initiative through the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police in 2019.

“Under Chief Booker’s leadership, the Decatur Police department has grown to be one of the most highly regarded departments in Georgia, if not the southeast,” City Manager Andrea Arnold said in the release. “While Chief Booker is going to be sorely missed, I know that his legacy of integrity, empathy and selfless public service remains embedded in the culture of the department."