Outlaw Sworn in as Chief of Portland Police

Tuesday, October 03, 2017

GoLocalPDX News Team

Danielle Outlaw

Danielle Outlaw was sworn in as the Chief of Police for the Portland Police Bureau on Monday.

She is the 48th Police Chief since 1870, when the Metropolitan Police Department was formed.

She was selected as Chief of Police in August by Mayor Ted Wheeler and is the third woman to be police chief in Portland and the first African-American woman to hold the position.

About Outlaw

She began her career with the Oakland Police Department as an Oakland Police Explorer. As she rose through the ranks to Deputy Chief, she worked in various assignments throughout the Oakland Police Department, including Patrol, Community Services, the Office of Chief of Police, the Criminal Investigation Division, Internal Affairs and the Office of Inspector General.

During her tenure as Deputy Chief, she led the Bureau of Risk Management, Bureau of Field Operations – Two and the Bureau of Services. Outlaw has presented on various topics including Race and Policing, Women in Law Enforcement, Deescalation and Investigation of Use of Force, Building Community Relationships after Controversy, Video Recording in Policing and Early Intervention Systems, and has been asked to provide technical assistance in areas of police accountability and risk management.

Chief Outlaw is the recipient of the Oakland Black Officers’ Association Trailblazer Award, the Holy Names High School Alumnae Association Citation for Service and the 2015 Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) Gary P. Hayes Award.

She has served as the Vice President of the San Francisco Bay Area National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE) Chapter, is a member of the University of San Francisco (USF) International Institute of Criminal Justice Leadership Advisory Board and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Human and Civil Rights Committee.

She also demonstrates civic advocacy through Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Deputy Chief Outlaw earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from the University of San Francisco and a Master of Business Administration from Pepperdine University. She is also a graduate of the Police Executive Research Forum Senior Management Institute for Police and the Major Cities Chiefs’ Association Police Executive Leadership Institute.