Police Chief Who Took Bullet For Ronald Reagan To Retire

ORLAND PARK, IL — Orland Park Police Chief Tim McCarthy, who has served in the role since 1994, will retire at the end of the month. McCarthy told other village officials of his intent to retire effective Aug. 1 earlier this week, according to a news release from the village. McCarthy is known nationally for having taken a bullet for President Ronald Reagan during an assassination attempt in 1981.

"Chief McCarthy, a long-time village resident, has faithfully and diligently served the village as its chief of police," Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau said. "He has provided steadfast and dependable leadership to the men and women of the Orland Park Police Department throughout this entire period. I have appreciated and benefited from his wise counsel since I've joined the village as mayor and remain thankful to have served the community alongside the chief who has always been a consummate professional."

Joseph Mitchell, who is currently the Orland Park deputy police chief, will serve as the interim police chief for the village when McCarthy retires.

McCarthy became the chief in Orland in May 1994, coming to the village after working for the United States Secret Service. During his time in the Secret Service, he served eight years in the Presidential Protective Division in Washington, D.C. and before that 14 years as a criminal investigator in Chicago.

On March 30, 1981, McCarthy was shot in the line of duty while protecting Reagan in the assassination attempt outside the Hilton Hotel in Washington, D.C. He soon recovered from his injuries and returned to work. A year later, he was awarded the NCAA Award of Valor for the effort.

It was one of the first of many awards McCarthy received in his law enforcement career that dates back to 1972. In 2016, he became the first winner of the Chief of Police of the Year award from the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police.

In Orland Park, village officials said McCarthy has "transformed" the police department "into a 21st century model with an emphasis on transparency and robust community engagement efforts."

"Under the chief's leadership, the police department has engaged in a more collaborative approach to village-wide initiatives such as addressing mental illness through the implementation of the department's nationally recognized Crisis Intervention Team focusing on response to mental health related incidents," the news release states, adding that in 2017 Orland Park police became the first agency in the world to complete the International Association of Chiefs of Police's One Mind Campaign Pledge "to enhance the interaction between law enforcement and those affected by mental illness."

McCarthy, a Leo Catholic High School alum who also served for a time as village manager in Orland Park, was not immediately available for an interview on his retirement.