As police Chief David Dorn retires from his role in Barrington, he hopes to build the same community partnerships as the next top cop of the Elk Grove Village department.
“Barrington is similar to Elk Grove, with heavy community involvement, and that’s been important to me throughout my career,” Dorn told Pioneer Press. “We’ve been able to make a huge impact in keeping the public safe, building good partnerships with community groups and the school district. The community aspect is the best part of my job and my whole career was building that relationship.”
Dorn, 49, had spent his entire law enforcement career in the Barrington Police Department, joining the department in 1998 after graduating college. He moved through the ranks throughout his 25 years with the department, serving as chief the last 11.
The opportunity arose to join the Elk Grove Police Department – located about 18 miles southeast of Barrington – and Dorn decided to accept the position. He moved his wife and nine children, who are between the ages of 5 and 20, to Elk Grove. He was set to be sworn in as the new Elk Grove Village police chief Tuesday.
“You have been an absolutely tremendous chief,” said Barrington Village President Karen Darch at the March 18 Village Board meeting, the last one he would attend as head of the police department. “Your leadership of the department has been phenomenal. We know Elk Grove’s win is our loss and we wish you well.”
She thanked Dorn at that meeting for his service. Then at the Barrington Village Board meeting Monday night, he was honored again, presented with a proclamation and in attendance as the new chief was sworn in.
Darch said Barrington has been “so well served by you.”
In Barrington, Dorn supervised 25 sworn officers in a town of about 11,000. Those counts will more than triple as he takes over in Elk Grove Village. There are 90 sworn officers in that town, and an estimated 33,000 residents, he said.
“It’s bigger and poses some new challenges,” Dorn said of his new role, which he assumed as of April 1. “It has the same types of crimes as Barrington, with traffic and theft, … but tripling it creates three times the amount of activity.”
Although he recognizes he had some challenging cases over the years, Dorn looks back on his experience in Barrington and said he is proud of his staff development and the relationships he created inside and outside of the department.
“I think we were able to establish relationships that enhance overall safety,” Dorn said, including initiatives with the fire department, safety and security plans at Barrington School District 220, and at various village departments and surrounding jurisdictions.
“There’s a heavy school presence for a department our size, heavy railroad use, traffic and a day population. You need to know the needs of the community and you have to get involved and work hand-in-hand with them,” the law enforcement leader said.
At the March 18 meeting, Barrington Trustee Jason Lohmeyer recognized Dorn’s leadership, development of staff and his partnerships within the village.
“There’s always been a very good interaction between the police and fire departments,” Lohmeyer said, adding that’s not always the case in every municipality. “The fact that our public safety is so cohesive is a testament to Chief Dorn.”
Dorn is confident Deputy Chief John Burke, who was hired in 1997 and rose through the ranks with Dorn, will continue those initiatives as he’s sworn in as the new chief. That happened at the board meeting Monday. Burke had served as deputy chief for the last seven years.
“John has a high level of integrity and a very strong work ethic,” Dorn said. “We share a lot of the same interests of being embedded in the community and good vision. He has a lot of skill in law enforcement, as a leader and a chief. We walked through a lot together.”
Most recently, the department has worked closely with community members and the school district in improving safety around the village’s railroad crossings after Barrington High School junior Marin Lacson, 17, was fatally struck by a Metra commuter train Jan. 26 while walking to school.
“There are a lot of really good safety initiatives in the works in Barrington,” Dorn said. “There are always going to be challenges, with seven train crossings, but you’ll see a lot of positive changes stem from a very tragic accident.”
Dorn said building partnerships with such neighboring municipalities as Lake Barrington, North Barrington, South Barrington, Barrington Hills, Lake Zurich, Inverness, Palatine and Fox River Grove have improved public safety, as did the June 2022 initiative to join Northwest Central Dispatch, enabling the department to share a radio with other area towns.
He said the current landscape in law enforcement in both Cook and Lake counties faces challenges that are more statewide than regional.
“Recruitment is a challenge and you’re always facing challenges with the Safety Act and challenges with legislation,” Dorn said, explaining that he thinks public perception of law enforcement has improved in recent years in response to outcry resulting in many changes in policing as a whole.
“The department is ready to go to the next step,” Dorn said. “I’m most excited to work for a great village again and work with and work alongside a lot of good people.”
Elizabeth Owens-Schiele is a freelancer.
