Retiring San Diego Police Department Chief David Nisleit bade a fond farewell Thursday to the municipal law enforcement agency he served for three dozen years and officially handed off its top post to newly appointed Chief Scott Wahl.
Nisleit walked out of the front doors of the department's East Village headquarters for the final time as chief in the early afternoon, flanked by rows of saluting uniformed officers.
The event included a final radio broadcast in his honor and a symbolic change of command, a longtime SDPD tradition.
Nisleit, the 35th chief of the department, assumed its leadership on March 2, 2018, replacing former Chief Shelley Zimmerman.
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"It has been an honor and a pleasure to serve the city of San Diego during my 36 years with the San Diego Police Department," Nisleit said when announcing his retirement.
Wahl, who has served as a patrolman in the SDPD Southern Division and as a captain in its Northern Division during his 26-year tenure, was chosen in March by Mayor Todd Gloria to succeed Nisleit.
“Public safety is hard won every single day, but to do it in the context of a global pandemic, social unrest and extreme political polarization, this is level 10 out of 10 in terms of difficulty, and Chief Nisleit more than aced that exam,” San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said Thursday.
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Gloria nominated Wahl from a pool of 56 candidates, according to the mayor's office.
“We had a huge, huge amount of challenges, and we’ve been trying to address those challenges the best we can with the resources we have and we’re going to continue to do that,” said Sgt. Jared Wilson, the San Diego Police Officers Association president, who added that the department has several priorities moving forward under Wahl’s leadership beginning Friday.
With reporting by NBC 7's Shelby Bremer — Ed.
