LIHUE — The Kauai Police Department is getting a new chief.
The Kauai County Police Commission selected Todd Raybuck, a former Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Captain, as the new KPD police chief, according to a county press release Tuesday.
Raybuck will take over following a change of command ceremony April 22.
The commission finalized its decision during a relatively brief executive session last week, according to several county officials, who said Friday they could not release the name of the candidate until the offer was officially accepted.
Raybuck’s hiring marked the end of a prolonged search for a new chief, following the retirement of former KPD Chief Darryl Perry last year. The effort was repeatedly delayed and expanded, ultimately requiring commissioners to vet 130 applicants from across the country over the course of eight months.
“Not only was Todd the best qualified candidate, he was also the best fit for our Kauai community,” Police Commission Chair Mary Kay Hertog said in a statement Tuesday. “He has more than three decades of law enforcement experience, and we are confident he will take KPD to the next level of excellence.”
Raybuck retired in February from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department as a captain after nearly 27 years of service. His assignment at time of retirement was bureau commander of one of LVMPD’s nine patrol substations and was responsible for leading the department’s patrol and investigative services for the 250,000 residents across the 80 square miles of the southwest Las Vegas valley.
Raybuck graduated Summa Cum Laude with a bachelor of science in criminal justice from Liberty University, Lynchburg, Va., in 2017, and is also a graduate of the 274th Session of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s National Academy in 2018.
He began his law enforcement career on Oahu, while stationed at Wheeler Air Force Base as a U.S. Air Force Security Police law enforcement specialist from 1987 to 1990, and was honorably discharged as a sergeant in 1991.
Raybuck will be moving to Kauai with his wife Kelly, a retired LVMPD police officer with 22 years of service; and his two sons, Kyle and Connor.
“I am humbled and honored to serve the community alongside the dedicated women and men of the Kauai Police Department,” Raybuck wrote in a statement. “I look forward to working with Mayor Kawakami, the Police Commission, and the community to address public safety concerns and improve the quality of life on Kauai. My family and I are excited to be moving from the ‘Ninth Island’ to the Garden Island, and we are grateful for the opportunity to become engaged members of the Kauai community.”
The department finally got smart and brought in a chief from the outside. No more “local” crapola in the KPD. It’s by the book now, dudes.
With an AF Security Police background, like General Hertog, and his experience with LVPD, he should be the right person for the job. He needs to bring a large broom and dust pan to clean out KPD mess.
Kpd Corription might see it’s end with Chief Raybuck.
Kauai welcomes a change in the status quo. The community has to embrace and support Chief Raybuck because once he start ruffling feathers, the old guard dogs of crime and corruption in kpd and DLNR will be determined to replace Chief Raybuck with a good ol boy.
This position has been a debacle for decades and Perry was one of the worst police chiefs in the history of Kauai and the state of Hawaii.
I hope and pray that Chief Raybuck will clean house and restore the public trust with the Dept that has been lost for decades.
Kauai desperately needs a good person in this public safety position after suffering years of corruption.
Good luck Chief Raybuck and God bless. Please make a change and difference that the people and island of Kauai sorely needs.
The Acting Chief must be so salty! I have only one thing to say bwahahhahahahahah Karma
Good luck with this clown. We were glad to get him out of vegas. It wont take long to see what he’s about…and that’s Todd and if you kiss his ring. I give him a year max and you all will be sick of him and his shenanigans. You should have picked another candidate, obviously you didn’t interview any real cops from Vegas
Hope you are reading the latest on this new chief on Kauai. What a dirt bag. Wish we had listened better when selecting him in 2019.
I’ve know Todd for 20 years. I met him while I was writing a club drugs, federally funded grant with a nonprofit I was working for. We needed a LVMPD support letter. He was the guy who picked up the phone when I called narcotics. I told him my concept and he said let’s get together and talk. Within days we were sitting down and he got us a letter of support from the Sheriff.
He’s a man of character, ethics, open-minded, smart, inventive, well-versed, listens to community partners and empowers his teams.
For years, I’ve seen him continually challenge himself professionally, educationally and personally. KPD is lucky! I will miss him, my friend.
🌻Lisa