Lima Police Chief James Baker, right, congratulates Maj. John Bishop, center, on his retirement, presenting him with a shadowbox displaying his accomplishments on the force.
Craig Kelly | The Lima News
LIMA — A ceremony Friday at the Lima Municipal Building marked the end of one era for the Lima Police Department and the start of a new one.
Lima Police Chief James Baker held the ceremony to celebrate Maj. John Bishop’s retirement from the department while subsequently promoting Lt. Zachary Leland, 35, to police major, making him one of, if not the youngest, officers to serve in that capacity in the department’s history.
“I think ceremony is really important in our culture, and it really helps finalize things or begin things or show significance,” Baker said. “This was one of the reasons I was really glad to have this ceremony in sending out somebody for a new chapter and then bringing in the new.”
Bishop, a Lima native, had served with the Lima Police Department since 1993, working as a patrolman, then as a detective. Bishop then returned to working as a police officer in 2007 before being promoted to sergeant in 2010, to lieutenant in 2013 and then to major in 2022, working over that time with the department’s bike team, honor guard, hazmat team and drone team.
“I really liked everything I did,” Bishop said. “I enjoyed my time as a detective, and that was very fulfilling, but getting back to the street and interacting with the citizens every day was pretty amazing.”
Leland, the son of retired LPD Detective Scott Leland, began his law enforcement career in 2009 with the Shawnee Township Police Department before moving to the Lima Police Department in 2011. He was promoted to sergeant in 2017 and to lieutenant in 2021, working with the bike team and, more extensively, with the department’s SWAT team. Leland will oversee the department’s patrol division in his new role.
“It’s a new job, so I’ve got to get my feet wet,” he said. “You’ve got to listen to the guys who are there and the guys who went before.”
Also receiving promotions at the department are Sgt. Scott Luedeke moving to lieutenant and Officer Darien Gaukin being promoted to sergeant. While Baker is gratified to see the upward movement in the department, along with an increasing rate of retention within the department’s ranks, he acknowledged there is still work to be done to bring the department’s workforce numbers up to where he would like to see them.
“We have hired and we’re doing some hiring, but it isn’t anything like we were hoping, especially with the lateral [hiring],” he said. “We’ve only been able to hire one person on the lateral, and we were really hoping for some more payoff from that, but it just hasn’t materialized.”
Efforts are continuing to recruit new officers through job fairs and visual and social media engagement, Baker said, with the department’s current officer count at 74.
“We were authorized for 86,” he said. “There was a time when we were touching 69 or 68, so this is better, but we’re a far cry from 86.”
