Three weeks after Los Angeles Police Department Chief Michel Moore’s said he will step down at the end of February, the city’s Police Commission announced Wednesday that Assistant Chief Dominic Choi would take over as interim chief effective March 1. Choi was selected in a unanimous vote by the five-member commission.
The assignment is expected to last only until mid-summer, while a nationwide search is conducted to find a more permanent replacement. Choi becomes the 58th chief in the LAPD’s history, and the first of Asian descent, the Los Angeles Times reports.
At a news conference that followed the commission meeting, Mayor Karen Bass introduced Choi, lauding the 28-year LAPD veteran for his “intimate knowledge of the LAPD, his belief that we will continue to reform how we police, and his strength of character.”
Choi’s name was among several that had circulated around police headquarters and City Hall for months as a potential candidate.
Choi joined the department in 1995 and was elevated to assistant chief in 2021. Before moving into an administrative role, he worked as a detective and supervisor, with stints in internal affairs, and later became the department’s homeless coordinator. Over the years, he occasionally filled in as acting chief while Moore was away.
