Chief Doug Shoemaker was sworn in as Chief of Police on Oct. 4, 2022. Chief Shoemaker's service to the Denton community followed four years of experience as the Grand Junction, Colorado Chief of Police. Prior to that, Chief Shoemaker spent over 26 years with the Jefferson City Police Department in Missouri.
Chief Shoemaker has widespread experience managing and leading a variety of police units, including investigations, narcotics, community services, patrol, and traffic. Additionally, he brings extensive experience as a Public Information Officer, having served in a collateral role for more than 12 years. During his time in Missouri, he engaged with national and international events and outreach efforts during critical incidents. He was also very heavily involved in various community-based organizations, such as the United Way and Boys and Girls Clubs, where he devoted more than 10 years of service on fundraising and youth-centered quality of life issues. Prior to leaving Jefferson City, he had a direct role in writing and successfully obtaining a state grant to set up a youth-based diversion program to keep kids out of the juvenile justice system through mentoring and other social services-based programs.
While in Grand Junction, Chief Shoemaker was credited with establishing a strong outreach effort between the Grand Junction Police Department and the Colorado Mesa University football team. His philosophy and core values of community policing, service above self, wellness, integrity, and treating everyone with dignity and respect, is unwavering. He also works with renowned author and speaker Simon Sinek on an upcoming initiative called The Curve, which brings together forward-thinking police executives from across the country to chart a path for next-level leadership training.
Chief Shoemaker is the Fourth Vice President of the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP), as well as a member of the Colorado Association of Chiefs of Police, the Police Executive Research Forum, the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives (NAWLEE), and the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE). He has served as Committee Chair for the Police Standards Ethics and Image Committee before assuming the Fifth Vice Presidency, and most recently served a 2-year term as Vice-Chair of the IACP's Public Information Officers Section, with duties to collaborate with other media experts to establish best practices in public outreach and media relations. He is an adjunct instructor for Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois, as well as an adjunct instructor for Colorado Mesa University. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in English Literature from the University of Missouri-Columbia, a Master of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Central Missouri, and a Doctor of Education in Organizational Leadership from Wilmington University in Delaware.