Desert Hot Springs, California (May 7, 2015) – The City of Desert Hot Springs is pleased to announce the hiring of Police Chief Dale Mondary. City Manager Martín Magaña, with the full support of the City Council of the City of Desert Hot Springs, has selected Dale Mondary as its new Police Chief. Mondary will begin working with the City effective June 22, 2015, when he will work with current Interim Chief of Police Jeff Kirkpatrick for a one-week transition period before assuming the helm of the Police Department on June 29, 2015.
Mondary is currently a Captain with the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, where he serves as the Commander of the Morongo Basin Station. In that role, he is the Chief of Police for the Town of Yucca Valley and the City of Twentynine Palms.
Chief Select Mondary is a 24 year member of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, where he moved through the ranks as a jail deputy, patrol deputy, detective, sergeant, lieutenant and current rank of Captain. Prior to his assignment as the Morongo Station Commander, he was the Commander over the County’s Court
Services Division, which included security in all 14 County Courthouses, as well as the Department’s Civil Enforcement Division, and a staff of over 200. During his career, he has served as the Executive Officer at Central Jail, the Morongo Station and the Bureau of Administration, where he assisted with the Department’s 550 Million-Dollar budget.
Mondary grew up in Jasonville, Indiana. After graduating from Shakamak High School, he joined the Army and served at Fort Riley, KS, as a Military Police Officer. He then served for nearly 10 years as a Police Officer for the Junction City, KS, Police Department.
Mondary has a Master’s Degree in Criminology and Criminal Justice and is a graduate of the 246th Session of the FBI National Academy. He has been actively involved in the Yucca Valley Community as a member of the Rotary Club, Footprints, Kiwanis, and the Yucca Valley High School Volleyball Booster Club. He has also served as a youth basketball and softball coach, as well as a volunteer umpire for Tri-Valley Little League.
Chief Mondary is a 21 year resident of Yucca Valley, where he lives with his wife of 31 years, Danette. They have three adult children.
Mondary said that accepting the position was a bittersweet decision. “I love the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department and the opportunities they have given me, and working for John McMahon is the highlight of my career. I would have only left for the ideal opportunity, and Desert Hot Springs provides me that opportunity. I can be a Chief of Police, be actively involved in my new community, without having to uproot and relocate my family. I look forward to continuing to build the Department in the direction that Chief Kirkpatrick and Chief Maynard started. They will be a great resource for me and I am excited about the direction that City Manager Martín Magaña and the City Council are taking the City,” he stated.
