New Police Chief is Longtime Milwaukee Cop

A 28-year veteran of the Milwaukee Police Department is the new police chief of Whitefish Bay, village officials announced Monday afternoon.

Michael Young has more than 30 years of law enforcement experience, starting with the Grafton Police Department in 1981. He has served 28 years with the Milwaukee Police Department, climbing the ranks as a police officer to the captain and district commander for District 6.

According to the city of Milwaukee's website, he also served as a detective, lieutenant and captain in the Criminal Investigation Bureau; as a detective and lieutenant in the Property Crimes, Violent Crimes and Homicide Division; a lieutenant and captain of the Intelligence Division; and as captain of the Milwaukee HIDTA drug and gang task force.

Young’s first day as Whitefish Bay police chief will be Nov. 12. He will be paid an annual salary of $96,000. Young, who lives in Milwaukee, already meets the Police Commission's residency requirement to live within Milwaukee County.

Young said his far south side district is the largest of the city’s police districts and is relatively low in violent crime. Although Whitefish Bay's annual crime report looks more like a monthly report from his Milwaukee district, Young said there are some similarities in the two neighborhoods. Additionally, Young said he has carried his experience as a small-town Grafton cop with him throughout his career.

Young, 53, said he looks forward to becoming part of the Whitefish Bay community and getting to work more closely with residents and government officials alike.

“I’m really excited to work with citizens to maintain the high quality of life in Whitefish Bay," he said. "I’ve done research about Whitefish Bay, and what I see is a really strong community that values its sense of community and its strong public school system.”

Young holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with majors in social work and sociology, and a master's degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee with a major in criminal justice and a specialty in management and administration. He is also a graduate of the Northwestern School of Police Staff and Command.

Hiring process

Whitefish Bay's previous police chief, Robert Jacobs, announced in February that he would retire at the end of June after seven years in the position.

Twenty-seven candidates applied for the position. In August, the Whitefish Bay Police Commission offered the job to Burlington Police chief Peter Nimmer, but Nimmer declined the offer to stay in Burlington. The two remaining candidates for the job were Young and Whitefish Bay Lt. Ron Stefanski, who was appointed interim police chief on June 5.

Whitefish Bay Police Commission President James Martin could not be immediately reached for comment.