The city of Irwindale has appointed former acting Baldwin Park Police Chief Christopher Hofford as the city’s new police chief.

Hofford served in the Baldwin Park department for 35 years, first entering the chief ranks as a lieutenant, when he stepped into the acting police chief role when then-Chief Steve McLean went on leave in 2020.

He’d taken leadership in a department that was reeling from a history of high turnover among its top ranks. That year, eight chiefs — permanent or temporary — had served that city in seven years.

Hofford stepped into a city where McLean had just accused the city’s then mayor at the time of preventing him from implementing a new test that would allow police officers to move up in the ranks.

Ultimately, in 2021, the Baldwin Park City Council unanimously appointed Robert A. Lopez as the new chief there.

Now, Hofford steps into the leadership role of an Irwindale department of nearly 40 employees that serves a community of around 1,500 people. Irwindale itself saw its former police chief, Ty Henshaw, leave last July after accusations that he sexually harassed a police dispatcher — claims he denied.

Hofford, who has served in law enforcement his entire career in the San Gabriel Valley, takes over for outgoing interim Police Chief Rob Castro.

Hofford has served roles ranging from part-time police cadet at the start to chief, along the way earning a master’s degree in public administration, graduating from the FBI’s National Academy as well as holding leadership roles in auxiliary law enforcement organizations.

According to an Irwindale news release, he’s the father of three daughters, is engaged to marry his fiancée later this year and enjoys biking and off-roading — when he’s not working, of course.