Holly Lamb promoted to chief of Pitt police following Loftus’ retirement

Pitt police appointed Holly Lamb to chief of police following the retirement of James Loftus in December 2023. 

Lamb served as deputy chief at Pitt from 2014 to 2023 and began her Pitt career as a patrol officer in 1996. She holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Ohio Dominican University and earned her police officer certification from the Allegheny County Police Academy. Lamb is also a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, American Society for Industrial Security, the National Association of Women Law Enforcement Executives and the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators.

While serving as police chief, Lamb plans on continuing Loftus’ work by striving to have a diverse police department. 

“We have always strived to have a diverse department, reflective of our students, staff and faculty. We will continue to hire quality candidates. All of our officers are trained in several diversity courses,” Lamb said. 

Lamb further outlined her plan for the future, saying she intends to use a multi-faceted approach that includes continued officer training, building relationships with student organizations and constantly improving the process for how information is spread across the University through ENS messages and crime alerts. 

“We have worked hard recently to review and make necessary changes to our ENS messaging to students, staff and faculty,” Lamb said. “I will constantly make sure procedures are reviewed to ensure this information is disseminated as necessary and in the timeliest fashion.”

Lamb plans on continuing to have and promote open lines of communication between the department and the community during her tenure. 

“That communication will be designed to lessen concerns about police accountability and to be aware of the community’s needs and expectations of our department,” Lamb said. 

In order to communicate with the community, Lamb also emphasized the importance of working with other law enforcement agencies, such as the FBI. 

“Campus policing and law enforcement in general are always evolving in society today. Tech crimes (computer crimes, swatting calls, etc.) are becoming more prevalent today and police departments must train to evolve with crime trends,” Lamb said. “Our strong partnerships with other law enforcement agencies in our area, including federal organizations such as the FBI, will go a long way to ensure we are aware of the most recent trends and that we are trained appropriately to combat them.”

In addition to partnering with law enforcement agencies, Lamb plans on constantly reviewing the Community Program Unit, which is made up of officers specializing in positive relationships with community groups to address safety concerns. 

“These officers are our ambassadors of partnerships. The philosophy of every police department member is to protect and serve our students,” Lamb said. “We will continue to post information related to internal investigations and policies and procedures via our website in an effort to be proactive in reference to transparency.”

Lastly, Lamb wants to continue building trust between the community and the police department. 

“By making this a priority philosophy for the entire department, including me. I will be available to meet with the community and have open lines of communication,” Lamb said. “Our Community Programs Unit will also work hard to bridge any gaps between the department and the community we serve.”