Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis

About our Speaker: 

Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis is the second woman in Austin’s history to serve as permanent Chief of Police. Her career spans more than three decades with the Cincinnati Police Department, where she served as Assistant Chief and Investigations Bureau Commander, which oversees homicide, major offenders, narcotics, and personal crimes.

Throughout her career, she served in multiple roles, specialized in building community relationships, used problem-solving, and evidence-based policing to address crime and disorder. In Cincinnati, she created a city-wide problem-solving unit trained to address crime and disorder in chronically violent locations, reducing overall crime and increasing the quality of life for community members.  

Chief Davis is passionate about community policing and building police legitimacy through community partnerships. By developing a specialized unit, she addressed the at-risk population victimization that includes the LGBTQIA+ community, Latino/Hispanic community, human trafficking victims, and youth experiencing homelessness.

In addition to receiving her bachelor’s degree from Xavier University, Chief Davis has received several awards for her work, including Superior Achievement in Law Enforcement and the Award of Valor.