By Bill Raack, KWMU

St. Louis – St. Louis County has named a new chief of police. Major Jerry Lee takes over on Tuesday, replacing Chief Ron Batelle, who is retiring.

Lee is a 33-year veteran of the county police department, serving most recently as the commander of the criminal investigation division.

He says his priority is to continue to provide the best protection possible to the county's residents.

"I think our department does that now, but as I mentioned previously I hope to improve wherever we can," Lee said. "We're always looking at new ways of doing things. One of the great programs we just started is the crisis intervention team where we have specially trained officers. We're very cognizant of domestic violence issues."

Lee says he plans to abide by the state's new concealed weapon law and will begin issuing permits once he receives the go-ahead from the county counselor.

Send questions and comments about this story to feedback@stlpublicradio.org.