Joe Bobak To Become Parma's Ninth Police Chief

Captain Joseph Bobak

The Parma Police Department and the City of Parma are pleased to announce the selection of Captain Joseph Bobak as the city’s ninth police chief. Capt. Bobak will replace current Chief of Police Robert Miller, who is retiring later this year.

Bobak was selected on January 8, after an intense interview process led by a panel consisting of Mayor Tim DeGeeter, Safety Director Michael O’Malley, and Strongsville Police Chief James Kobak.

“We are more than pleased with the selection of Captain Bobak as our new Chief, and we look forward to moving our city forward together,” DeGeeter said. “I want to thank Chief Miller publicly for his great service to the city, and I extend thanks as well to the other applicants who interviewed for the chief position and for their leadership within the department.”

In an evaluation of Bobak, Miller calls him “a confident leader … who understands the delicate relationship between supervision and keeping officers motivated. Captain Bobak is well-liked by his officers.”

Bobak, a Parma resident, has served with the Parma Police Department for 25 years. He is currently the department’s Executive Officer and commander of the Detective Bureau, where he oversees the handling of criminal investigations in all three units of the detective bureau.

Bobak was instrumental in implementing the police department’s Crime Scene Unit, which collects and processes forensic and trace evidence at crime scenes. He also serves as the commander of the SWAT team and the police firearms range.

“I’d like to thank Mayor DeGeeter and Safety Director O’Malley for this opportunity,” Bobak said. “I am looking forward to working together with city officials, residents, and businesses in the immediate and long-term future for the betterment of Parma.”

Bobak, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in Criminology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Master’s degree in Criminal Justice from Tiffin University, also oversaw the development of the department’s computer forensics lab, where detectives are now able to forensically examine various types of electronic and digital evidence.

In 2008, Bobak graduated from the Northwestern University Center for Public Safety-School of Police Staff and Command, and in 2014 he completed the Police Executive Management Program at Northwestern University. As a result of completing these police executive training programs, Capt. Bobak received the Public Safety Executive Leadership award from Northwestern University. 

In 2011, Bobak graduated from the FBI National Academy in Quantico, VA.

A former commissioned officer in the U.S. Army where he attained the rank of captain, Bobak served as the company commander for a military police unit.

“Public safety is of utmost priority in our city,” DeGeeter said. “We are very confident that with Capt. Bobak in the Chief position, Parma will remain one of the safest cities of its size in the country.”

Jeannie Roberts

Communications Director for the City of Parma

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Volume 8, Issue 2, Posted 9:53 PM, 02.02.2016