Dalton Police Chief Jason Parker will be stepping down as head of the agency on Friday afternoon, leaving to take over as city administrator for the City of Dalton.
Chief Parker has served as police chief since Nov. 27, 2007.
Assistant Chief Cliff Cason will assume command of the police department after the close of business on Friday afternoon while the Dalton Public Safety Commission searches for a new chief from a pool of qualified internal applicants.
Assistant Chief Cason was promoted to become the agency’s second-in-command in April of 2015 and has more than 24 years of service with the agency. He previously served as one of the agency’s division commanders and in a number of other roles within the department including patrol supervisor and drug unit detective.
Assistant Chief Cason holds a master’s degree in public administration from Columbus State University in Columbus, Georgia and a bachelor’s degree from Covenant College. He is a graduate of the FBI’s prestigious National Academy program and has specialized management training from the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police, the Police Executives Research Forum, and FBI LEEDS (Law Enforcement Executive Development Seminar).
The Public Safety Commission has not announced a deadline for having a new chief in place.