Interim MNPD Chief John Drake
August 6 was MNPD Chief of Police Steve Anderson’s final day in command of the department before expediting his previously announced retirement.
Deputy Chief John Drake assumed command of the MNPD as Interim Chief, taking over for retiring Chief Steve Anderson on August 7.
Drake takes over while the city continues “its national search for a reform-minded Chief of Police who will make Nashville a model of community engagement and policing innovation, according to Metro officials.”
“I’m grateful to Chief Anderson for his 45 years of service in the Metro Nashville Police Department. He is a dedicated public servant with an unwavering sense of civic duty,” said Mayor Cooper.
Drake, who is a native of Nashville and joined the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department in 1988, is considered by many to be a frontrunner in the replacement of Anderson.
In his years with the Metro police, Drake has been assigned to the Patrol Division, the Vice Narcotics Division, the Police Athletic League and the Office of Professional Accountability.
In 2008, he was promoted to sergeant and assigned to the North Precinct Patrol Division as an evening shift supervisor. After being promoted to the rank of lieutenant and serving another stint in patrol, Drake was assigned the position of Investigative Lieutenant at the Hermitage Precinct where he oversaw the investigations of a myriad of crimes ranging from thefts to homicides.
In 2014, Drake was promoted to the rank of captain and worked as an overnight field captain until being assigned as captain of the Domestic Violence Division where he helped develop the Lethality Assessment Protocol and a new domestic violence supplement that has garnered great reviews around the country. Deputy Chief Drake graduated summa cum laude from Bethel University with a bachelor’s degree in ‘public service.’ In 2011, he also completed courses in The Southeastern Command and Leadership Academy hosted by the University of Tennessee.
In 2013, Drake attended a leadership course at The Police Executive Research Forum’s Senior Management Institute for Police, an intensive three-week course hosted by Boston University. Deputy Chief Drake currently oversees the Support Services Bureau, which includes: Custom Services Division (school resource officers, field training officers, special events); Criminal Warrants Division (fugitives section); Parks and Recreation Division; Facility Management Division (evidence and storage, archives, vehicle impound, facility security, police vehicle operations, inventory management and supply, safety and inspections and court appearance section); Special Operations Division (SWAT, emergency contingency, canine, aviation, mounted patrol, traffic, school crossing guards).
