Chief Skinner Names Eugene Native Jake Burke Deputy Chief

Eugene Police Chief Chris Skinner named Jake Burke deputy chief of the Eugene Police Department, elevating a local officer with more than three decades of law enforcement experience into a senior management post that oversees the department’s investigative work.

Burke, an Eugene native who graduated from Thurston High School in Springfield and holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Western Oregon State College, brings more than 30 years in policing to the role. His career began in 1995 as a reserve officer with the Monmouth Police Department, and he joined the Salem Police Department in 1998, where he served for more than 25 years.

In his most recent assignment, Burke served as the department’s investigations captain, a role he assumed in 2024. In that capacity he supervised multiple investigative units that handle the county’s most sensitive cases, including the Violent Crimes Unit, Property Crimes Unit, Financial Crimes Unit, Special Investigations Unit, Forensic Evidence Unit, and Evidence Control Unit. Those divisions are central to how Lane County law enforcement investigates serious violent offenses, evidence processing, and cases with financial or complex investigative components.

Chief Skinner framed the appointment as a leadership and continuity decision. “Deputy Chief Burke is an experienced and respected leader,” Skinner said. “His background uniquely qualifies him to immediately step into the role of deputy chief and provide value to the Eugene Police Department in service to our community.”

Burke’s career record includes progression through rank-and-file leadership positions, serving as corporal, sergeant, lieutenant, and ultimately as a deputy chief-level investigations commander. He has been recognized with several departmental honors, including Officer of the Year and Detective of the Year, and has been awarded a Distinguished Service Award. He also has been honored for his work with child advocacy organizations and partner agencies, a credential that intersects with investigative work involving vulnerable victims.

For Eugene residents, the appointment signals a leadership change with direct operational implications. Responsibility for coordinating violent-crime investigations, forensic evidence handling, and cross-unit case management now sits with an officer who has deep regional experience in Salem and a recent role managing EPD investigations. The move could affect case assignment priorities, interagency coordination, and how investigative resources are deployed across Lane County.

The department has not published an official effective date for Burke’s new title. City and department observers will be watching how Burke’s leadership affects investigative outcomes and department priorities, and whether EPD provides a full transition timeline and personnel updates from the chief’s office in the coming days.