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Chief Joseph LeMire

Joseph LeMire has been offered and accepted the position of University of Wisconsin Oshkosh Police Chief.

LeMire replaces University Police Chief Mike Melland who retired after 28 years of law enforcement service. LeMire has served as the Interim University Police Chief the past eight months. Prior to that, he served as UWO’s Police lieutenant for two years.

LeMire came to UW Oshkosh from Escanaba, MI, where he served as a police officer, detective and lieutenant.  He brings with him more than 18 years of law enforcement and leadership experience and a solid commitment to community policing and campus safety.  He has a Bachelor’s of Arts in Criminal Justice from the College of St. Thomas and is presently enrolled in UW Oshkosh’s Masters in Public Administration Program.

“He possesses outstanding administrative and training skills, particularly in the areas of investigation and emergency planning and response,” Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs Petra Roter said.

LeMire said among his top goals is “really moving the department to get into the world of emergency planning and incident action planning, making officers more versatile.”

“When you talk about events on campus related to sporting events, political visitors, Board of Regents meetings, protest meetings and things related to the budget, the police department has to be prepared for instant planning for those events,” LeMire said.

This past August, LeMire was a key planner and served as the incident commander in a Winnebago County-wide, full-scale, mass-casualty exercise hosted on the UW Oshkosh campus. He is also credited with the expansion and implementation of the Community Service Officer (CSO) program.

“Chief LeMire has developed outstanding relationships and partnerships on and off campus which enhance safety and security at UW Oshkosh. His collaborative nature and extensive experience allows him and University Police to be flexible and responsive to the community’s safety needs,” Roter said.

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University Police Department