City Manager appoints veteran Police Department leader Joyce LaPointe to be the next Chief of Police

COSTA MESA - City Manager Cecilia Gallardo-Daly announced Costa Mesa Police Department veteran Joyce LaPointe will be the new chief of police, making her the first woman to hold that role in the city's history.

LaPointe has been the interim chief of police since June, after the retirement of former Chief Ron Lawrence.

"Chief LaPointe is a trusted member of our city leadership team and a longtime member of the Costa Mesa community, and I know she is grateful to continue serving the community she loves," City Manager Cecilia Gallardo-Daly said. "Her years of experience and dedication to Costa Mesa made this an easy decision to name her as our new police chief, and I am looking forward to working together with her for the betterment of the city."

Mayor John Stephens expressed his confidence in Chief LaPointe.

"Chief LaPointe is the perfect choice to lead our police department into the future," said Mayor John Stephens. "She is a seasoned veteran who has risen through the ranks. She has been instrumental in growing our police department to its highest number of sworn officers in the past 15 years and reducing crime in our town. Chief LaPointe has been a valuable member of the command staff that embraced technology and transformed the culture of the department. She's also a Costa Mesa resident who is extremely accessible to the community. We are very fortunate that Joyce LaPointe is our new police chief. The Costa Mesa Police Department has never been stronger."

Chief LaPointe said she is grateful for this opportunity.

"I am incredibly honored to be appointed as the permanent chief of police for Costa Mesa," said Chief LaPointe. "I want to thank the City Council for their continued support, City Manager Gallardo-Daly for entrusting me to lead the police department, and my CMPD family for their ongoing support and faith in me. As the police department continues to build on the positive momentum from June, my focus will remain on taking care of our personnel, strengthening our culture, staying innovative in policing, and ensuring we lead with purpose, accountability, and heart. Our community depends on us to protect and serve, and I know CMPD will always rise to that responsibility."

LaPointe was named to the position of deputy chief, the first to hold that role in Department history, in April of 2023.

Chief LaPointe began her career in 1997 as a police officer. LaPointe promoted to sergeant in 2007, and held various supervisory roles including patrol sergeant, jail sergeant, FTO sergeant, force tactics team supervisor, and emergency management coordinator.

In 2015, LaPointe promoted to police lieutenant of the Executive Staff and was initially assigned as an area commander providing management oversight to a variety of special units and teams, as well as performing one of our department's most crucial and key roles of watch commander.

In 2018, LaPointe served as the telecommunications manager, where she oversaw the Police and Fire Dispatch Center, Technical Services, and special projects.

In 2020, LaPointe was promoted to police captain to serve on the department's Command Staff and has been the division commander for both the Support Services Division as well as the Field Operations Division. She is an associate member of the California Police Chiefs Association, and a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

LaPointe earned her bachelor's degree in physical education & kinesiology from Vanguard University in Costa Mesa. She is recognized by some in the community as a past sports coach at Costa Mesa High School before starting at CMPD.

Throughout her long and distinguished career in policing, she has completed several advanced law enforcement training courses including the Sherman Block Supervisory Leadership Institute, Force Science Institute Certificate Course, the Executive Development Courses for both California POST and the California Police Chiefs Association.

LaPointe is a long-time resident of Costa Mesa, where she lives with her spouse Linzi and their three dogs.

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