Laguna Hills, Ca. (March 30, 2023): Captain Bill Burk has been selected as the new Chief of Laguna Hills Police Services. He began his new assignment Friday, Mar. 24.
“I am deeply honored to receive such an incredible opportunity,” Captain Burk said. “Laguna Hills Police Services has a reputation of hard work, perseverance and dedication toward the safety of its community, and I look forward to contributing to the continued protection and trust our citizens deserve.”
Captain Burk joined the Sheriff’s Department in 1999 and worked as a deputy in Custody Operations and Patrol Operations. As a patrol deputy, he served four years in the city of Lake Forest, where he participated in community meetings and neighborhood watch events.
In 2011, Captain Burk became a K-9 handler. For seven years, he specialized in critical incident calls throughout the county, assisted SWAT on high-risk operations, and advanced the K-9 training program with his experience, knowledge and leadership. He was promoted to sergeant where he worked a variety of assignments, including overseeing the Custody Operations K-9 team. He later became the Behavioral Health Bureau Sergeant where he supervised a multi-disciplinary team committed to assisting the homeless population and those with mental health needs through a robust program that includes proactive engagement and resource distribution.
He played a pivotal role in developing our co-response teams involving mental health clinicians collaborating with patrol deputies to address the mental health crisis in our communities.
Captain Burk promoted to Lieutenant in 2022 and was assigned to the Central Men’s Jail as the Watch Commander. Most recently, he was promoted to captain of the Behavioral Health Bureau in Custody Operations.
In addition, Captain Burk has extensive specialized law enforcement training in Critical Incident Response, Mobile Field Force and Incident Command Systems. He also is well-versed in special event management and crisis communications strategy and management.
