New Top Cop Hired In Western Springs

WESTERN SPRINGS, IL – The Western Springs Police Department, which has been without a chief for most of the last three months, is set to get one in March.

On Monday night, the Village Board approved the appointment of Addison Deputy Police Chief Sean Gilhooley as the new chief.

He is set to be sworn in March 6.

Gilhooley has been with the Addison Police Department since 1996. His roles have included detective, patrol sergeant and detective sergeant.

Before joining the Addison department, Gilhooley was a dispatcher for North Riverside. He has a bachelor's degree in criminal and social justice from Lewis University.

Gilhooley is taking over a department that has seen a number of management changes in the last year.

Last spring, Deputy Police Chief Daniel Albrecht left under a cloud. Former Police Chief Brian Budds resigned in early November to become the police chief in Buffalo Grove.

After Budds left, Terry Mee, who has served in a number of suburban departments, was hired as interim chief. He left after three weeks, though it was unclear why.

After Albrecht's sudden exit, detective Ashlee Niezgoda was appointed deputy chief. She has been in charge of the department since Mee's departure, though she was not given the interim chief title.

In a news release Tuesday, the village thanked Niezgoda for taking on more responsibilities during the search for a chief.

Western Springs police make fewer arrests and respond to fewer crimes than nearby towns, if its weekly blotters are an indication.