Kevin Kaucheck Takes Oath of Office as Chief of Police–30-year veteran looks forward to enhancing department’s tools and skills

Mayor Meghan George administered the oath of office today to the City of Lakewood’s new Chief of Police, Kevin Kaucheck.

Mayor George said, “Kevin is an extremely well qualified and experienced law enforcement officer who is respected by his peers and will provide tremendous leadership for our department.”

The City of Lakewood began the civil service examination process to identify candidates and make a selection for Chief of Police earlier this year. The process culminated in today’s oath of office ceremony.

Kaucheck said, “I am humbled and honored to serve as Chief of Police to a department where I have invested so much and in a community where I have built such strong relationships. I look forward to continuing our department’s development.”

Kaucheck is a 30-year veteran who has been consistently promoted, having recently served as Lieutenant in charge of the department’s Narcotics and Vice Unit for more than nine years before being promoted to Captain and leading the Patrol Division and then the Administrative Division. He succeeds Tim Malley, who retired in June 2020 after 38 years in the Lakewood Police Department and 18 years as chief.

Kaucheck takes the reins of Lakewood’s Police Department staffed by 94 full-time sworn officers, 20 full time civilian employees, and 7 part-time employees. Civilian employees include dispatchers, corrections officers, administrative clerks, school guards, cleaning staff, and property/evidence management. The department is divided into three divisions: Traffic & Patrol Division, which provides 24-hour police coverage to the community and includes Lakewood’s Special Operations Unit (Community Police Officers, Training, SWAT, Fugitive Apprehension, DARE, Safety Education, Youth Resource Officers, and the Citizens Police Academy); Investigative Division, specializing in general investigations, juvenile crime, domestic violence, sex crimes, and narcotics and vice; and the Administrative Division, which staffs the Lakewood Communications Center, Jail, Records, and Animal Control.

The mission of the Lakewood Police Department is to preserve the peace, protect life and property, prevent crimes, apprehend criminals, recover lost and stolen property, and enforce, in a fair and impartial manner, the ordinances of the City of Lakewood, the laws of the State of Ohio, and the laws of the United States of America.