Organization elects IUPUI police chief to high office

IU-Purdue University Indianapolis Police Chief Paul Norris was elected first vice president of the Indiana Chiefs of Police Association on Jan 28.

“It’s a feather in our cap for our department and for him,” said David Briggs,
IUPUI police department officer.

If ascension of officers occurs as usual in 2012, Norris will be the first African-American president of the association, Briggs said. Norris was formerly the second vice president for the association.

The association’s mission is to advance professionalism and training as well as increase public knowledge of safety issues, according to its website.

The board creates programs and policies for all members of the statewide association.

Norris, who grew up in Bloomington, worked in law enforcement at IUPUI in the 1980s before becoming a member of IU police in 1989, where he went from lieutenant to chief. After working as chief of police at University of Virginia, Norris went to IUPUI in 2005, according to an IUPUI police press release.