MIAMI – Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez announced Thursday that Miami-Dade police Deputy Director Juan Perez will be the next director of the police department.
The announcement came just after the graduation ceremony for the Miami-Dade Police Department Academy.
Perez succeeds retiring Director J.D. Patterson, who worked for the police department for more than 30 years.
He was appointed director in 2013.
Perez has worked in law enforcement for 25 years and joined the Miami-Dade Police Department in 1990.
"I have confidence that Juan will lead the Miami-Dade Police Department in a manner that will make our world-class community proud -- continuing to modernize our infrastructure, enhance our technology, and keep our residents safe, informed and engaged," Gimenez said in a statement. "I look forward to working with him to lead MDPD forward; tackle the public safety challenges that our community faces; and to take our department to even greater levels of excellence."
Perez was appointed deputy director of the police department in 2013 and has been responsible for "organizational changes in policy, practices, procedures and strategies to improve the overall effectiveness and responsiveness of the department," a county representative said.
Perez begins his duties as director on Monday.