Little Rock, Arkansas – After nearly 30 years serving the people of Little Rock, Police Chief Heath Helton has announced his retirement, closing a lengthy law enforcement career that city leaders say coincided with major reductions in violent crime and sweeping modernization efforts inside Arkansas’s largest municipal police department.
Chief Helton formally submitted his retirement letter to Mayor Frank Scott Jr., with his final day scheduled for Friday, May 29.
The announcement marks the end of a leadership period that city officials say included four straight years of declining crime rates while the department expanded the use of technology-driven policing and crime prevention strategies.
Mayor Scott praised Helton’s leadership and credited him with helping guide the city through one of its strongest periods of crime reduction in recent memory.
“Under Chief Helton’s leadership and implementation of our comprehensive crime reduction strategy, we have seen historically low homicide rates this year and significant downward trends in overall crime,” Mayor Scott said. “He has had a positive impact on our entire community during his 30 years as a police officer, and we are a safer, stronger City because of his work.”
Crime Declines During Helton’s Leadership
According to city officials, violent crime in Little Rock has fallen by 6 percent compared to last year and is down 15 percent over the past five years.
Overall crime in the city has reportedly declined by 14 percent during that same period.
Perhaps most notably, city officials said homicides in Little Rock have dropped by 64 percent over the last five years.
Officials credited several policing strategies and technological investments for helping drive those improvements.
During Helton’s tenure, Little Rock expanded investments into law enforcement technology, including the creation and use of the Real Time Crime Center.
City leaders described the center as a major crime-fighting tool that uses partnerships with residents and local businesses to help prevent crimes, improve response times, and solve investigations more quickly.
Helton also focused patrol resources on neighborhoods with higher crime activity while simultaneously pushing efforts aimed at building stronger trust between officers and the community.
Officials said he emphasized transparency, accountability, and modern policing standards throughout his leadership.
Mayor Scott appointed Helton as Little Rock’s 39th police chief in December 2022 after he had already been serving as interim chief.
Helton originally joined the Little Rock Police Department in 1996 and steadily moved through the ranks over the years.
He became a captain in 2015 before later being promoted to assistant chief and eventually police chief.
Mayor Launches National Search for Successor
City officials confirmed that Mayor Scott will immediately begin a nationwide search to identify the department’s next permanent leader.
The city hopes to appoint a new chief before the end of the year.
Until a permanent replacement is selected, Assistant Chiefs Andre Dyer, Joe Miller, and Troy Ellison will rotate responsibilities as interim police chief.
Chief Helton reflected on his career and thanked both the department and the community for supporting him throughout nearly three decades in law enforcement.
“After nearly 30 years in law enforcement, the time has come for me to close this chapter of my life and begin a new one,” Chief Helton said.
“Serving as the Little Rock police chief and leading the men and women of the Little Rock Police Department have has been the honor of a lifetime,” he continued. “I have full confidence in the dedicated professionals who continue to serve this City each day, and I know the Department is in excellent hands. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to serve this community and for the trust placed in me to lead such an outstanding organization.”
Mayor Scott also praised Helton personally, calling him a trusted colleague whose impact on the department and the city will continue beyond his retirement.
“Chief Helton is a trusted colleague, and we wish him continued success in his retirement and in accomplishing the goals that remain ahead,” the mayor said.
Helton’s retirement closes a significant chapter for the Little Rock Police Department as city leaders prepare to search for a successor capable of continuing the department’s recent crime reduction progress while maintaining community trust and public safety initiatives.
