Erika Shields is an American law enforcement officer. She previously served as the chief of police of the

Louisville Metro Police Department The Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) began operations on January 6, 2003, as part of the creation of the consolidated city-county government in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It was formed by the merger of the Jefferson County P ...

from January 2021 to January 2023. She was previously the 24th

chief of police A chief of police (COP) is the title given to an appointed official or an elected one in the command hierarchy, chain of command of a police department, particularly in North America. A chief of police may also be known as a police chief or somet ...

of the

Atlanta Police Department The Atlanta Police Department (APD) is a law enforcement agency in the city of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States. The city shifted from its rural-based Marshal and Deputy Marshal model at the end of the 19th century. In 1873, ...

from 2016 to 2020.

Early life and education

Shields is a native of Morris, New York. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in

international studies International relations (IR, and also referred to as international studies, international politics, or international affairs) is an academic discipline. In a broader sense, the study of IR, in addition to multilateral relations, concerns al ...

from

Webster University Webster University is a private university with its main campus in Webster Groves, Missouri, United States. It has multiple branch locations across the United States and countries across Europe, Asia, and Africa. The university has an alumni net ...

and a master's degree in criminal justice from

Saint Leo University Saint Leo University is a private Catholic university in St. Leo, Florida. It was established in 1889. The university is associated with the Holy Name Monastery, a Benedictine convent, and Saint Leo Abbey, a Benedictine monastery. The universi ...

Career

Before joining the Atlanta Police Department as a patrol officer in 1995, Chief Shields worked as a stockbroker in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. She was the second woman to lead the

, and the first openly gay person to do so. On December 1, 2016, Atlanta Mayor

Kasim Reed Mohammed Kasim Reed (born June 10, 1969) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 59th List of mayors of Atlanta, mayor of Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia's state capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), ...

announced that he had selected Shields to succeed Chief George N. Turner, who was retiring. In May 2020, amid protests in Atlanta in response to the

murder of George Floyd On May 25, 2020, George Floyd, a 46-year-old Black American man, was murdered in Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old White police officer. Floyd had been arrested after a store clerk reported that he made a purchase using a c ...

, Shields said that the angry reaction was understandable, and that the value of the lives of black people was being diminished by police or other individuals, stating that such events were a "recurring narrative". She added with some suggestions on how police could do better, namely better training and "weeding out bad cops", and praised the use of body-worn cameras. Shields addressed demonstrators stating that she was happy to allow protests so long as they didn't violate laws. She stated her opposition to using force to halt the protests, stating that protestors have a right "to be upset, to be scared, and to want to yell". On June 13, 2020, Shields resigned after a video went viral of an officer fatally shooting a black man, Rayshard Brooks. During his arrest for DUI, Brooks wrestled officers, grabbed a taser, and aimed it at the pursuing officers. In January 2021, she joined the Louisville Police Department. In June 2023, she joined Georgia-based provider of training tools for law-enforcement agencies InVeris as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO).

References

External links

TEDxCentennialParkWomen talk: Leaders Show Up
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shields, Erika Living people Louisville Metro Police Department officers Chiefs of the Atlanta Police Department American lesbians LGBTQ people in law enforcement LGBTQ people from Kentucky LGBTQ people from Georgia (U.S. state) Year of birth missing (living people) Webster University alumni Saint Leo University alumni