Black and Brown in Blue: Kevin Kilgore

COURTESY // @sonomastatepolice on Instagram

Students and police officers join together for a photo.

On the tenth session of Conversations with Black and Brown in Blue, Chief of Police Nader Oweis sat down with newly elected Deputy Chief of the City of the Rohnert Park Department of Public Safety, Kevin Kilgore. Kilgore gave amazing insight into the variety of departments he has worked for and his upbringing. He also touched on his plans moving forward on how the department is going to try and recruit more LGBTQ+ and what that looks like specifically. 

Kilgore began his policing career in 1997 in a suburb of Cincinnati as a Deputy Sheriff. It was there where he found his future husband. Years later in 2006, they made the move out to Los Angeles, CA., working at the University of California Los Angeles. Kilgore mentioned he made this decision because when he mailed in his resume, the background investigator called him and asked, “I don’t know what I’ve got to do, but what do I need to do to get you here?” The welcomingness was very appreciated by Kilgore. It was at that point Kilgore knew where he was going to move. Kilgore also talked about the transition from working in a town to a university. He found it very similar. 

In an interview with the STAR, Kilgore described his experience working at a university,“What I found very quickly was that the university environment was its own city within itself. No matter how large or small the university is.”  

Kilgore is a big advocate for hiring officers from all types of backgrounds. He mentioned that having people with all different types of experiences will help make the department as diverse as it can be. He also went on to talk about having a good relationship with citizens. “Customer service is one of the things we struggle with. Building that relationship with community members… education and enforcement is truly something that we need to move towards,” said Kilgore. 

Senior and Business Marketing major, Ashay Chutke, has attended multiple sessions of Black and Brown in Blue. However, this one was his favorite. Chutke said that it was very interesting to see through the lens of a LGBTQ+ officer. A perspective he had not ever heard of before. “All police officers are extremely brave. But, in my opinion, officer Kilgore is a lot more brave. Hearing his backstory and everything was very inspiring,” said Chutke. He went on to talk about how tough it must have been growing up in a conservative area. Chutke also mentioned, “... it’s nice to know that we are protected by a department that is inclusive when it comes to hiring. That shows me they are prioritizing a diverse department and gathering people from different backgrounds. I think that's important so officers can see situations from alternative perspectives.” 

Kilgore is on the forefront of creating the most diverse department he possibly can, in hopes to create the safest environment for the community. Kilgore gave very insightful plans for the future of policing in Rohnert Park. He said he will focus heavily on recruitment and educating the officers about positive engagement with community members. Kilgore has great ideas and plans to guarantee a blissful future.