Streamwood chief to become St. Charles police chief

Streamwood Police Chief James T. Keegan is expected to switch badges next month and become the new police chief in St. Charles.

St. Charles City Administrator Mark Koenen announced Thursday afternoon he will recommend Keegan become the new chief at Monday's city council meeting. If aldermen agree, Keegan's first day in St. Charles will be June 30.

Keegan spent 21 years with the Streamwood police department. He became chief about two years ago when his predecessor, Alan Popp, became one of many village employees to accept a voluntary early retirement package the village offered. The most high profile case during Keegan's tenure as chief was the murder of a gas station clerk during a robbery in March 2013. The case remains unsolved.

A written statement from St. Charles lists Keegan's major accomplishments in Streamwood as: participating in the planning and construction of a new $12 million police facility; leading the revision of the village's Comprehensive Emergency Operations Plan; implementing bar-coded evidence processing; and upgrading in-car computer systems for the entire police fleet.

"We conducted a thorough and comprehensive search of candidates throughout the area before choosing Chief Keegan," Koenen said in the statement. "I'm confident he has the experience and foresight to lead the St. Charles Police Department and uphold the high standards of service our community has come to expect."

The city spent six months searching for a new police chief after the former chief, Jim Lamkin, followed former City Administrator Brian Townsend to Schaumburg and took a job as police chief. Deputy Chief Steve Huffman served as interim police chief for St. Charles since then. He will remain with the department.

Keegan said in a written statement that he is "honored and humbled" by the city's selection.

"I am anxious to get started in working alongside the fine men and women of the St. Charles Police Department in providing our citizens, businesses and visitors with the best possible community-oriented public services we have to offer."