About Chief Paul Williams:
Paul F. Williams was sworn in as the Chief of Police for Springfield, Missouri, on July 1, 2010.
Chief Williams holds a master’s degree in Criminal Justice Administration from Northeastern Oklahoma State University and a bachelor's degree in Criminal Justice from Northern Michigan University. He graduated from the Senior Management Institute for Police in 2009 is a graduate of the 207th Session of the FBI National Academy and in 2019 completed the DOJ/FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Seminar He instructs criminal justice courses at Missouri State University, was certified as an instructor for the IACP Leadership in Police Organizations program and is a Missouri POST certified law enforcement instructor.
Chief Williams is a leader in the law enforcement community, serving on the Board of Directors the IACP, as the Immediate Past Chairman of the IACP Mid-Sized Agencies Division, a member of Missouri’s Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) Commission, and as the Chief of Police representative on Missouri Crime Lab Review Commission.
He previously served as President of the Missouri Police Chiefs Association, and as the Chair of the Missouri Police Chief’s Charitable Foundation. He was selected by his peers as the MPCA’s “Police Chief of the Year” in both 2015 and 2016, and as one of Springfield’s Men of the Year in 2016.
Chief Williams is actively involved in the Springfield community, currently serving as the Chair of the Brightli Board of Directors, and on Board of Directors for Community Partnership of the Ozarks, Burrell Center for Behavioral Health, and the Greene County Family Justice Center, and on the 911 Advisory Board, and the Trunked Radio System (TRS) Board. Chief Williams is a member of Springfield Rotary-Downtown and serves on numerous other advisory boards and councils.