A Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office chief deputy was named the new chief of the Sacramento State Police Department on Tuesday, according to a SacSend email from Sac State Vice President for Administration and Chief Financial Officer Jonathan Bowman.

The new chief, Chet Madison Jr., has worked at the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office since 1996 and has been a chief deputy since 2017. Madison will begin in his new role at Sac State on Sept. 1.

A CSU Long Beach graduate with a masters degree in emergency services administration, Madison oversaw areas such as field and investigations, support services, and contract and regional services as chief deputy, and he previously worked as a captain in the central patrol division.

Madison plans to “prioritize meeting and listening to the campus community from the outset of his appointment,” according to Bowman’s email.  

In a town hall held at Sac State in May with candidates for the chief position, Madison said that he intends to hold his staff accountable for any potential racist actions by soliciting honest feedback from the community then addressing the situation immediately.

“One of the things that we have to address is that we have to denounce any kind of racism,” Madison said. “If that’s occurring, there’s no room for it. We don’t want individuals who support racism. That’s not part of the fabric of our community.”

Madison also said in the town hall that he plans to make himself available to discussions with the university community about their experiences and comfort level with law enforcement.

Madison will be taking over for outgoing Chief Mark Iwasa, who worked at the university for 10 years and announced his retirement in March.