CHIEF OF POLICE MOVES UP RETIREMENT DATE

Leaves Department 'On a High Note' After Nearly 14 Years

Mel Mack, Chief of the Addison Police Department, has announced his intent to retire from this position on July 31, 2003, nearly one year earlier than he had previously declared. In December, Mack had notified the Village Board of his plan to retire on May 31, 2004.

His decision to move up his retirement comes as the result of the loss of colleagues in the law enforcement field, including Itasca Police Chief Michael MacDonald who recently died of a heart attack.

"Life is short," Chief Mack said, explaining his decision. "This can be a very stressful profession, and I want to have time to spend with my family. The Addison Police Department is on a high note right now, we've received positive feedback about our pending reaccreditation, and this is a good time for me to call it a day."

Village President Anthony Russotto appointed Mack as Chief of Police on November 27, 1989. He previously served as Deputy Chief of the Elk Grove Village Police Department from 1980 until his appointment. Upon his retirement, he will have served the police profession for 37 years.

During his tenure, the Addison Police Department received its first national accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA) in 2000, and is expected to receive the reaccreditation shortly before Mack leaves his position.

Programs which were initiated under Mack's administration including Community-Oriented Policing, Michael Lane Neighborhood Resource Center, Indian Trail Junior High School Student Participation Center, Crime Prevention Unit, and many others. "I owe much of my successes to my staff, and to the F.B.I. National Academy," said Mack, who received specialized leadership training from the academy in 1981 and 1997. "Deputy Chiefs Hayden and Stoll, and Commander Gorniak are also F.B.I.N.A. trained, which has done much to move our department ahead professionally."

Chief Mack is the father of six children, one of whom is a Sergeant with the Chicago Police Department in the Mounted Patrol Unit, and is the grandfather of eight.

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