Daniel Likens officially appointed St. Charles police chief, set to start Sept. 15

After a months-long search, St. Charles has officially found its new police chief.

Daniel Likens’ appointment was approved unanimously by the St. Charles City Council at its meeting last Tuesday night, Sept. 2.

Finding a new police chief for the city has been months in the making.

It started when the city announced that former police chief James Keegan, who had been on a personal leave of absence, was stepping down in March, according to past reporting. Former deputy police chief Eric Majewski took over while the city began looking for Keegan’s replacement.

In June, the city said it made an offer to a candidate, but the individual accepted a police chief job in another community.

Then, in July, the city floated Likens as the likely pick, according to past reporting.

Shortly after, St. Charles Deputy Police Chief Rich Clark took over as acting chief for a brief stint until a permanent candidate took over, while Majewski, who had been serving as the interim chief in the months prior, started as St. Charles School District 303’s leader of safety and security in August, per the school district.

At the Sept. 2 St. Charles City Council meeting, Mayor Clint Hull reflected on the national search process the city conducted.

“We talked about the importance of this position,” Hull said. “We didn’t want to just restrict it to local or state. We said, ‘We want to go out, and we want to get the best candidate we can.’”

The city received 47 applications in its search, according to a memo from St. Charles City Administrator Heather McGuire. Nine candidates interviewed for the job, and Hull and McGuire narrowed the field to four, who were interviewed by Hull and the City Council.

At the Sept. 2 meeting, Hull noted that the city involved sworn and non-sworn employees of the police department in the search, and thanked the department’s staff for making do while they found the new chief.

“It’s not lost on the City Council, it’s not lost on myself,” Hull said, “that the entire department had to do a lot to step up as we went through this search.”

Likens, too, after his appointment was approved, commented on the search process.

“It was a fun process,” Likens said. “You guys did something very unique in the way that this occurred … and I think it speaks volumes that you involved your officers and your staff to bring some of those questions out.”

Likens comes from the Illinois State Police, where he served as a lieutenant colonel and the assistant deputy director for the Division of Criminal Investigations Statewide Investigative Command, according to past reporting. According to his resume, he worked for the state police for nearly three decades.

Now, after the council’s vote, Likens’ appointment is official, and he’s set to begin later this month.

“I can’t wait to get to work,” Likens said at the Sept. 2 meeting. “I still feel like I got a lot in the tank.”

mmorrow@chicagotribune.com