Cesar Torres sworn in as new Mission police chief
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A familiar face in the law enforcement community made their return to policing as the city of Mission’s next top cop.
Cesar Torres was welcomed to a strong showing of American flags and Mission police cruisers before being sworn-in Monday.
The badge-pinning ceremony took just days after former chief Robert Dominguez retired following 35 years with the department.
RELATED: Mission police chief retiring after 35 years of service
“We’re all going to miss you,” Torres said to Dominguez during the ceremony. “It’s a sad day for the city of Mission, Texas, that we lost 35 years of experience, but I’m the right one to replace you.”
Torres, 54, got his start in policing as a K-9 handler for the Mission Police Department. He said he is the first in his immediate family to receive a college education and thanked his friends and family in attendance.
Torres was most recently the chief of police for the city of Edinburg up until May 2021. Previous reports state the city “separated” from Torres, something he lightly mentioned.
“Unfortunately, we went two different sides of the aisle,” he said. “But it was a very humbling experience.”
With hopes to ‘beat’ crime and elevate the department, Torres called for “immediate and sustained” training in implicit bias and de-escalation efforts for his officers.
Most importantly, he added, is more training in mental health.
“It’s important that we know what we’re looking for,” Torres said. “It’s important that we give those citizens the proper help instead of arresting them and putting them in jail.”
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