Soledad Announces New Police Chief
The city of Soledad announced it's selection for the next chief of Soledad, Patrick Venezuela.
Venezuela comes to the central coast after spending nearly 2 decades at the Glendale Police Department in Arizona, where he has served since 1996. There, he started as a patrol officer before rising through the ranks to Lieutenant, recently overseeing the foothills district and supervising multiple specialized units like property crimes, the Neighborhood Response unit, and School Liason Officers.
In addition to his law enforcement experience, Valenzuela has also served in the U.S. air force reserves and the U.S. Navy, where he took on a leadership role in military police operations and supported national security missions on multiple deployments.
Valenzuela also has a master's degree in leadership from Grand Canyon College and a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice from Kaplan University. Soledad city officials say that his law enforcement experience makes him the perfect choice for the police chief role.
The city will be holding a swearing in ceremony for Valenzuela on Wednesday July 16th at 6pm in Soledad's city hall. The city council meeting will follow after the ceremony at 7pm.
