Chief Gibson joined the Mt. Shasta Police Department in 2002 and was appointed as the Chief of Police in December 2021, after serving as the acting Chief of Police since April 2021. Prior to joining the police department, he had served in the United States Marine Corps, California Army National Guard and as a firefighter for California Department of forestry and fire protection CDF. Chief Gibson has worked as a patrol officer, DARE officer, narcotics officer, and patrol sergeant. While working as a patrol officer Chief Gibson wrote the Mount Shasta Police Department Field Training Program, ensuring the department followed the California Peace Officer Standards and Training regulations. As an officer he was awarded the Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) award three times and was the recipient of “Officer of the Year” award in 2005 and 2011.
As a task force officer, Chief Gibson worked on several large cases including operation Greenhorn II which was an undercover trafficking operation at both Mt. Shasta and Yreka High Schools. The result of that operation was the arrest of 62 persons who were involved in the sales of narcotics in the high schools. Chief Gibson finished his time with the task force as the assistant commander. He was promoted to Sergeant in 2011 where he worked as not only the direct field supervisor for the department but was also assigned as the background investigator for new employees, the internal affairs investigator, field training coordinator and evidence and property supervisor.
Chief Gibson has brought back the citizen lockout service and is an example of the small town, personal service that is critical for the successful operation of the Mount Shasta Police Department. His experience and professionalism led to him being named the Mt. Shasta City incident commander during the Lava Fire, where he worked closely with many allied agencies to ensure that the safety of the citizens of Mt. Shasta was prioritized. Chief Gibson has applied for and successfully obtained tow large Proposition 64 grants that has made it possible for the Mt. Shasta Police Department to hire additional resources, such as a DARE Officer, Community Service Officer, and Narcotics Officer to better serve the citizens of Mt. Shasta.
Chief Gibson was born and raised in Siskiyou County and been married for the last 24 years to a wonderful wife with three children and 5 grandchildren. Chief Gibson is a graduate of Southern New Hampshire University with a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice. In his off time Chief Gibson enjoys spending time with his grandchildren, hunting, fishing, camping and traveling the country.