Chief Weber has been in law enforcement for over forty-eight years.
The Wauwatosa Police Department just announced the retirement of Chief Barry Weber.
According to a Wauwatosa Police press release, Weber’s retirement will be effective June 1st.
“Chief Weber has been in law enforcement for over forty-eight years, serving as Police Chief for the City of Wauwatosa for the last thirty-one years. Chief Weber, thank you for your service and commitment to the men and women of the Wauwatosa Police Department and this community. You have shown dedication and professionalism throughout your career. We wish you the best in retirement.”
Chief Weber has the distinction of having hired every sworn member of the Wauwatosa Police Department. The Wauwatosa Police Department consists of 92 sworn officers and 40 full and part time support staff. Wauwatosa has a population of about 48,000.
Chief Weber made the #1 position in Wisconsin Right Now’s The Wisconsin Right Now Wall of Fame: People Who Did The Right Thing in 2020. for his leadership when protests ignited over the officer involved shooting of Alvin Cole on Feb. 2 outside Mayfair Mall by officer Joseph Mensah. Mensah had been involved in three separate shootings during his five-year tenure at the Wauwatosa Police Department. Each shooting was investigated and determined justified. However, Mensah was still placed on suspension on July 15, after family members of one of the shooting victims complained to police administration. Mensah would eventually resign, but was later hired by the Waukesha County Sheriff’s department.
Chief Weber wrote a letter of recommendation to the Waukesha County Sheriff’s Department for Mensah.
Under Wisconsin State Law, the hiring of a police chief is under the sole direction of the Police and Fire Commission.
The Wauwatosa Police and Fire Commission will determine the next steps/details of the hiring process, which will be available on the City of Wauwatosa website: www.wauwatosa.net.
Wauwatosa Mayor Dennis R. McBride issued the following statement:
Today, Police Chief Barry Weber submitted his retirement notice to me. He will retire on June 1, 2021.
Chief Weber has served 48 years in law enforcement, 31 of those years as Chief of the Wauwatosa Police
Department. I thank him for his service and wish him a happy retirement.
Later this week, the Wauwatosa Police and Fire Commission (PFC) will hold a special meeting to formally
accept Chief Weber’s retirement notice and to begin discussing the hiring of a new chief. Under Wisconsin
law, the Mayor and Common Council will not have any role in that process. Section 62.13 of the Wisconsin
Statutes gives the PFC sole authority over the selection of police and fire chiefs. After the PFC determines
how it will proceed, a description will be published on the City’s website, www.wauwatosa.net, so the
public can follow the hiring process.
