OPD names new Lieutenant at swearing-in ceremony

The Oxford Courthouse was standing room only for the swearing-in ceremony of Adam Price, who has been promoted to the position of Lieutenant with the Oxford Police Department on March 18.

Only six people have held the position of lieutenant at OPD in the past 30 years, Police Chief John Jones said. 

Price joined OPD 19 years ago as a patrol officer and became a detective in 2010. In 2016, Price was promoted to Sergeant, and he became Detective Sergeant in 2022. His wife and daughters attended his swearing-in ceremony and pinned on his new badge.

Jones and others helping with the hiring process considered three internal candidates for the role. Each candidate went through a daylong assessment led by outside company Trusted Elite, followed by a panel interview. Every candidate was strong, Jones said in an interview with the Oxford Free Press, but Price ultimately rose to the top of the list.

“We have really good people,” Jones said. “Any of them could have done this job, it’s just that Adam has done everything he needs to do to prepare him for this position. I think he did that intentionally with the training he picked … He set himself up for success.”

Price’s grandfather was a police officer, but when Price himself started college at the University of Cincinnati, he wasn’t sure what he wanted to do. When an adviser suggested criminal justice, he enrolled in a couple classes, including one called “Analysis of a Bank Robber.”

“You had to write a paper on how to commit a bank robbery,” Price remembers now. “That’s far better than any math or business class you’re gonna take, so I was like, ‘This is awesome.’”

When Price graduated college, he applied to a number of different departments. In the wake of 9/11, he said, some law enforcement positions saw hundreds of applicants. He had some knowledge of Oxford when he got the job with OPD because his sister went to Miami University, and it’s been the people that have encouraged him to stay in the two decades since then.

“This was my first job in policing,” Price said. “The culture and the standard here was really good, and I had some mentors and some people that helped guide me … As I’ve climbed rank and acquired rank, I kind of try to do the same thing with some of the younger folks that have started here. I want to see them succeed.”

Unlike in some larger agencies where officers may focus on specific tasks, Price says he’s gotten to try a bit of everything while working for OPD. He’s done everything from patrol to undercover work to serving as an evidence technician.

As he moves into the lieutenant position that was previously held by Lara Fening, Price will now perform a more front-facing role, particularly with social media and as a public information officer. He’ll also focus more on supporting the department’s dispatchers, clerks and parking staff, as well as assist with recruitment and hiring.

In the immediate future, though, Price will still spend some of his time in the detective sergeant role through the end of the school year while OPD works to promote another officer into that position.

OPD has traditionally had low turnover, but Jones said that trend has changed somewhat in recent years, with more officers leaving for other jobs after spending 10 years or less in Oxford. One of Price’s immediate roles as lieutenant will be to oversee the recruitment and hiring process, and Jones said he hopes to put more focus on retention moving forward.

“We have in the last few years made considerable efforts with recruitment, and I think we need to focus also on retention,” Jones said.

After the Detective Sergeant vacancy is filled, Jones said OPD leadership will meet this summer to discuss everyone’s specific responsibilities and could change some staff expectations based on strengths and needs.