Shon F. Barnes is the Chief of Police for the Seattle Police Department in Seattle, Washington. Chief Barnes is a nationally recognized leader in crime reduction and community-police relations. In recognition of his contributions, Chief Barnes was honored as a National Institute of Justice, LEADS Scholar (Law Enforcement Advancement using Data and Science) for his innovative use of technology and scientific methods to combat crime. He previously served as the Chief of Police in Madison, Wisconsin and was the Director of Training and Professional Development for the Civilian Office of Police Accountability in Chicago, Illinois. Before that, Chief Barnes was the Deputy Chief of Police in Salisbury, North Carolina (2017-2020) and held the rank of Captain with the Greensboro Police Department, where he began his career as a patrol officer in the fall of 2000. He is also a council member on the National Police Institute’s Council on Policing Reforms and Race, a nonpartisan initiative dedicated to using research and evidence to address pressing issues in police reform.
Throughout his career, Chief Barnes has championed Neighborhood Oriented Policing, which emphasizes smaller police beat responses, neighborhood ownership, and community engagement at all organizational levels. He is a national advocate for EvidenceBased Policing strategies and was inducted into the Evidence-Based Policing Hall of Fame at George Mason University. Most recently, he received the Excellence in Policing Award from The Center for Police Practice, Policy and Research at Radford University.
Chief Barnes holds a B.A. in History/Pre-Law from Elizabeth City State University (Elizabeth City, North Carolina) and a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice from the University of Cincinnati (Cincinnati, Ohio). He has also earned a Ph.D. in Leadership Studies from North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (Greensboro, North Carolina) with a published dissertation that explored racial profiling in police traffic stops. This work was awarded the 2018 Outstanding Dissertation Award for the College of Arts and Sciences at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University.
His philosophy on policing can be summarized as follows: “Community policing should be neighborhood-oriented, community-focused (encompassing both businesses and residences), problem-oriented, and grounded in the most current empirical research available to swiftly reduce crime and enhance citizens’ satisfaction with police services.”