Miami Police's Edwin Lopez says becoming the city's newest Police Chief fulfills a "childhood dream"

Edwin Lopez was sworn in Tuesday as Miami's 44th police chief, a role the 46-year-old described as a "childhood dream". The ceremony, held at the Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts, was attended by hundreds of family members, friends, colleagues, and law enforcement officials from across South Florida.

Lopez succeeds Manny Morales in leading a department of 1,400 sworn officers and 400 civilian employees in a city of nearly 500,000 residents.

"It means the world to me. This is an opportunity of a lifetime. It's a childhood dream. I am so blessed to be able to lead 3 different police departments in South Florida. But the city of Miami is the magic city, and I am super eager to get in and hit the ground running and meet the great men and women of this department," Lopez said of the job.

Lopez began his law enforcement career at 19 with the Miami-Dade Schools Police, where he worked for 25 years and served as chief for four years. He had served as the police chief for Doral since 2023.

Outlining his goals, Lopez stressed the importance of crime reduction and community engagement. 

He said, "My priorities are crime reduction, community engagement, and getting to know the officers of this department. I lead from the front, not the desk or the office. So I am out in police cars trying to understand the culture so that we can collectively try to bring that out. Getting our officers to engage the community is the most important thing."

Lopez said he had a track record for transparency and has always had "good relations with the media."

He said, "We are collaborating with a lot of agencies, and my priority is to continue what we have been doing with this well-oiled machine, but with minor tweaks in terms of my personality."

Miami Mayor Eileen Higgins praised the new chief, stating that Lopez believes there is "no difference between public safety and public trust" and that he understands that he needs to bring both strength and compassion to the role.

Reflecting on his path to the position, Lopez expressed his gratitude for the support of his mentors and family.

"It takes a village to raise a child. I am just a humble kid from Miami with no money, with immigrant parents that has risen now to be chief of police of the Magic City, and for me, I am eternally grateful. The job comes with a lot of responsibility, but I would not have gotten this job on my own. It takes the support of the family. It takes mentors and coaches and people who have played a pivotal role in my life," he said.