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A familiar face is returning to the Durant Police Department as Chief

Online Niel November 28, 2024

DURING, Okla. (KXII) – With 24 years of law enforcement experience, Jesse Petty is not in uncharted territory as the new chief of the Durant Police Department.

“I’m also a third-generation law enforcement officer, so it just came naturally and it’s almost like a family business and it’s a good fit,” Petty said.

Chief Petty intends to ensure the department makes data-driven decisions.

“Whether that comes with crime analysis and then targeted patrol, then I want to take real initiatives around community engagement and fostering an environment of partnerships with the community that we serve,” he said.

Crime in Bryan County looks different in every city, and in Durant, Chief Petty wants a firmer approach to property crime.

“It’s related to theft, it’s breaking into a car,” Petty said. “I think that’s an important piece of education that we want to always bring to the public to lock your vehicles and not leave valuables inside and certainly not visible to people driving by.”

He adds that he won’t have tunnel vision when looking to improve the department as a whole. He also plans to improve the dispatch division.

“It’s not just patrol, it’s not just detectives,” Petty said. “We also have a great support staff that we want to make sure we give props to and continue to improve their processes because service requests start with shipping, so that’s a vital role.”

For Petty, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. His father served as an OHP trooper and his grandfather worked for the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety. This new role as Chief PD Dunt brings him closer to home.

Petty says having a servant’s heart and having previously held roles with Durant’s police department as a field training officer, constable, sergeant and lieutenant assures him that this is where he belongs.

“This was just an opportunity of a servant’s heart to give back and serve my local community and kind of my ‘home department’ if you will for 21 years on the streets,” Petty said. “Overall, I think it’s a good decision.”