Chief's Message
Welcome to the Elm Ridge Police Department website! We hope you are able to learn about our department and the many community programs we offer. I’d like to share with you the department’s history, policing philosophy, and more.
History
Prior to the department’s existence, the District was patrolled by the Denton County Sheriff’s Department. The Elm Ridge Police Department was originally implemented as the Denton County Water District Police Department in 2018 for four primary reasons:
- Police presence and deterrence
- Response time to calls for service
- Traffic enforcement
- Community programs and engagement
In 2022, the department’s name was re-branded to the Elm Ridge Police Department to offer a better sense of identity and pride to our organization and the citizens we serve.
Philosophy
The department operates within four values, or as we like to call them; cornerstones: Service, Integrity, Transparency, and Empathy. Every decision made, whether internally or externally, is tested against these values to ensure we are abiding by our department’s policing philosophy. Our philosophy, at its core, is building partnerships with our community and engaging in internal and external collaborative efforts. The pursuit of this philosophy is maintained to ensure we keep the trust of the citizens we serve as well as continually executing our public duties at the highest degree of excellence.
As the first line level police officer to join this department at its inception, it has been my pleasure to take part and witness the growth and progressive movement of this agency. I am extremely fortunate to be surrounded by service minded teammates that are passionate about their chosen career and serving others. At our foundation, we are a community-based policing agency. In fact, we exemplify what it means to be a community-oriented police department. We hope you will research our many community programs such as the Police Explorer Program, Citizen Police Academy, and Special Needs Alert Program, as well as a multitude of other engagements such as Coffee with a Cop, Open Houses, and more. I also invite you to follow us on our many social media platforms: Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
Please stop by and say hello if you have the chance. I’d love the opportunity to discuss further with you the professionalism and dedication of our department as well as answer any questions you may have.
Brandon Kennedy Chief of Police