The Dallas Police Department is entering a new chapter with Michael Igo at the helm as the recently named interim chief.

On Monday, Igo made his first public appearance since stepping into the role, proudly presenting badges to 42 promoted Dallas police officers.

“This is another step in the department, building future leaders, and it’s an opportunity for newly promoted senior corporals, sergeants, and lieutenants to get out in the field and be future leaders of this department. It’s an exciting time for the department,” Igo told Fox 4 KDFW.

With over 33 years of service in the Dallas Police Department, Igo was appointed interim chief after the previous chief of police, Eddie Garcia, departed for a new role in Austin, as previously reported by The Dallas Express.

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Garcia will serve as one of four assistant city managers in Austin, specializing in public safety.

Igo has held various positions within the police department in the past, most recently as executive assistant chief. He expressed his eagerness to take on his new position, telling Fox 4 that he was, “very excited, very honored to be the interim chief of the Dallas Police Department, so yes, very excited.”

Igo also spoke very briefly on the understaffing issues within the Dallas Police Department.

“We are working on our recruiting and retention, which is, I know, tied to one of the amendments. And our team is working very hard to recruit in the department,” Igo said.

As previously covered by DX, as of May 2024, the DPD only had around 3,000 officers in uniform serving Dallas residents, despite a city analysis that claimed roughly 4,000 officers are needed to bring down response times and properly maintain public safety.

With Kimberly Tolbert now serving as interim city manager, the timeline for appointing a permanent chief remains uncertain.