The Antioch Police Department has a new interim chief, but the community is hopeful as the work to reform the department will continue.
“When you have gone through so much hell, you’re optimistic about pretty much everything,” said Tachina Garrett with the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment.
Garrett is a longtime Antioch police reform advocate. This was a day she wasn’t going to miss, and she wasn’t alone as a packed house gathered for a changing of the guard.
“And I believe that we have seen the department stabilize,” said outgoing Interim Chief Brian Addington, who is now re-retiring after joining the department to help during the turbulent aftermath of the police texting scandal.
“There’s a lot of cameras,” laughed Captain Joe Vigil, who now becomes interim chief for a second time, as the city conducts a search for a permanent chief, a job Vigil says he would very much like to apply for.
“Transparency, community trust, and crime reduction are our priorities,” Vigil said Tuesday. “I will update our residents on milestones as we progress on these initiatives.”