Crime & Safety

New Top Cop in Laguna Niguel

Laguna Niguel now has a new police chief. Lt. Matthew Barr has been selected to succeed Lt. Andy Ferguson. Ferguson was recently reassigned to the County's Emergency Communications Bureau.

Barr has served the sheriff's department in cities all around Orange County, from Stanton to San Clemente. He's done traffic, investigation, emergency preparedness and more for the department.

Here's more about the new chief, courtesy of the City of Laguna Niguel:

The City of Laguna Niguel is pleased to announce the selection of Lieutenant Matthew Barr of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department as its new Chief of Police Services. Lt. Barr brings over 28 years of professional law enforcement experience to his new position including service in the cities of Lake Forest, Rancho Santa Margarita, Laguna Woods, Dana Point, Mission Viejo, San Juan Capistrano, San Clemente and Stanton.

He has a broad range of police experience including field and supervisory assignments in patrol, investigation, traffic, community relations, emergency communications, crime prevention and administrative services.

Find out what's happening in Laguna Niguel-Dana Pointwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"Keeping Laguna Niguel safe is one of our top priorities and our Police Chief sets the tone for our multifaceted law enforcement efforts. I'm convinced Lt. Barr will be a great fit for the community and will help raise the bar to make our city even safer," said Mayor Robert Ming.

The City of Laguna Niguel contracts with the Orange County Sheriff''s Department (OCSD) for local law enforcement services. Lt. Barr successfully competed for the position with other OCSD Lieutenants who had expressed an interest in the position. "We had a number of outstanding applicants for the position, however, Matthew clearly emerged as the top candidate in all parts of the evaluation process,” said City Manager Rod Foster. “The City Council and I look forward to having him as a member of our Executive Team."

Find out what's happening in Laguna Niguel-Dana Pointwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Lt. Barr succeeds Lt. Andy Ferguson who was recently reassigned to the County's Emergency Communications Bureau. As Chief of Police Services in Laguna Niguel, Lt. Barr will oversee 39 sworn and civilian personnel and the City's Police Auxiliary Citizen's Team (P.A.C.T.), and administer a law enforcement budget of over $10 million. He will assume his new position with the City on August 23rd.


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