New police chief appointed in Santa Maria
SANTA MARIA, Calif. - The City of Santa Maria has appointed Marc Schneider to succeed Phillip Hansen as police chief in January.
This comes after Hansen announced he will be retiring in December after 45 years in law enforcement.
The police department said Schneider’s law enforcement experience spans three decades. Beginning in the City of Pismo Beach in 1993, he was hired by Santa Maria PD in 1995. There, he worked as an Officer, Sergeant, Lieutenant and in March 2017 was promoted to Division Commander.
A longtime Santa Marian, Schneider has a passion for serving the community and serves on the following non-profit boards: Board of Trustees for Child Abuse Listening Mediation (CALM), Advisory Board for One805, and Department Liaison for the Santa Maria Police Council. He is also a member of the following civic organizations: Breakfast Rotary Club of Santa Maria, and the Santa Maria Elks Lodge #1538.
He currently holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Criminology and a Master’s Degree in Human Resource Management.
Schneider will begin as Acting Chief on Saturday, Dec. 19, and become Chief on Jan. 2, 2021.
