Lafayette Has New Interim Police Chief and Search Begins for Permanent Chief

The city of Lafayette once again has a new person who has been appointed as the Interim Chief of Police according to officials at Lafayette City Hall.

Lafayette Mayor-President Monique Boulet has announced that Paul Trouard will be leading the department while a national search is being conducted.

Chief Administrative Officer Rachel Godeaux will be the person leading the search, and Boulet says she does plan to to put together a community-based committee for the search. Boulet also plans to have a public component so that people may give their input.

Trouard has 27 years of law enforcement experience and mostly recently he was the assistant to the Lafayette Chief of Police.

Boulet says

I have full confidence in Chief Trouard's ability to lead our department while we begin our search. We've got really great leadership at Lafayette Police Department right now and are focused on getting the right Chief in this position rather than hiring someone simply to fill the role quickly.

Boulet did not say how long the search process will last.

Boulet says Trouard has many accomplishments including the following:

Masters degree from Columbia Southern University

Bachelor's degree from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Undergraduate Certificate in Criminal Justice from the University of Virginia

FBI National Academy graduate

 Trouard says,

My expectation is that I expect perfection. If we chase perfection, we can achieve excellence. Public safety is everyone's responsibility, and we are always better when we work together.

The search will begin in the next 30 days.