A.M. "Jake" Jacocks, Jr.

Senior Leadership Council

Chief Jake Jacocks recently retired from his position as the Chief of Police for Virginia Beach, the 42nd largest city in the nation, and one of the safest according to a ranking by the FBI.  As Chief, he had been responsible for a nationally accredited police department with an authorized staff of 816 sworn and 170 civilian personnel, supported by an annual budget of $86 million that served a population of over 434,000 and nearly three million visitors annually.

Jacocks was also Second Vice President of the Major Cities Chiefs Association and served on their Homeland Security and By-laws Committees. He was a member of the Executive Board of the Virginia Association of Chiefs of Police and the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Criminal Justice Services Board. Chief Jacocks is a past member of the Executive Committee of the International Association of Chiefs of Police. He was a charter member of the Virginia National Defense Industrial Authority, serving for two years. The Governor of Virginia appointed Chief Jacocks as a Military Aide de Camp and as a member of the Governor’s Motorcycle Advisory Council. He is a past member of the Executive Board of Lead Hampton Roads and recipient of LHR’s Julian F. Hurst Leadership Award.

As a member of the Virginia Beach Police Department, Jacocks served the citizens of Virginia Beach for over 38 years. He began as a civilian Precinct Desk Officer at the age of 19. Since becoming a sworn officer in October 1973, he served in all four precincts, the Detective Bureau, Special Operations and the Professional Standards Office. In April 1999, he was appointed Deputy Chief of Operations and he was appointed Chief of Police on March 15, 2000.

Jacocks received a direct commission as an Ensign and a Top Secret clearance in the Naval Reserve in 1987 and served as an intelligence officer in a variety of intelligence and operational reserve units, including multiple Department Head tours. He retired from the Navy after over 20 years of service in December 2007 with the rank of Commander.

Jacocks holds a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology and a Masters of Public Administration. He is also a graduate of the Southern Police Institute, the Police Executive Leadership School at the University of Richmond, PERF’s Senior Management Institute for Police, the FBI’s National Executive Institute, the Naval Postgraduate School’s Homeland Security Executive Leaders Program, the FBI’s Leaders in Counter Terrorism program and LEAD Hampton Roads. He is also a long-term member of the Board of Directors of the Sugar Plum Bakery, Inc., a non-profit organization that provides job skill training to developmentally disabled individuals.