Interim Roswell Police Chief Takes Oath Of Office

ROSWELL, GA — The interim police chief for the city of Roswell was sworn into office last week, ushering in a new era for a law enforcement agency rocked by scandal. Helen Dunkin took the oath of office on Friday, Jan. 4. She replaces former Chief Rusty Grant, who retired from the agency in December.

Dunkin is serving in an interim capacity while the city searches for and hires a permanent police chief. Dunkin, who joined the Roswell Police Department in May 2014, has more than 30 years of law enforcement experience, the Roswell Police Department said on its Facebook page. Before she was named interim police chief, she held the rank of captain and served as commanding officer of the Office of Professional Standards. Before coming to Roswell, she served nearly 26 years with the Los Angeles Police and Fire departments.

During her career, she has held various assignments, including but not limited to: patrol, field training officer, media relations, criminal investigations, patrol supervision and internal affairs investigator and supervisor, the agency added. Dunkin has a master's degree in emergency management administration and a bachelor's degree in occupational studies from California State University, Long Beach.

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Grant's departure comes four months after the city brought on a firm to conduct a top-down assessment of the Roswell Police Department. Bringing on the organization was one of the things the city and Police Chief Rusty Grant pledged to do in the aftermath of current and former officers making headlines due to controversial traffic stops and incidents.

The most infamous incident involved two former officers who used a coin-flipping app to determine whether they would cite or arrest a motorist accused of speeding. Those former cops, Courtney Brown and Kristee Wilson, had their employment terminated by the city after an internal investigation.

Another controversy came to light when reports surfaced that Sgt. Daniel Elzey left a teenager inside a freezing patrol car in an effort to get him to provide the details needed to contact his parents. That teenager was pulled over by officers after he was spotted riding a golf cart along Highway 9 during the overnight hours of Jan. 2. The agency also had to contend with dash cam footage showing a police K-9 in its employment attacking a teenager who was obeying officer's orders.

Image via Roswell Police Department