Shortly before Josh Millsaps marks his 10th anniversary of full-time employment with Centerville Police Department, he’s becoming its chief.
At its May 13 meeting, town council unanimously approved Millsaps to replace retiring Chief Ed Buchholz, starting June 1.
Millsaps grew up in Centerville and graduated from Centerville Senior High School in 2009.
He became a full-time CPD officer in July 2015, first joining the department as a reserve officer two years earlier.
Millsaps said this opportunity is the next step in his career after being promoted to sergeant in February 2023. At that time, Millsaps was CPD’s officer based in Centerville-Abington Community Schools. Through the years, Millsaps also became certified as a law enforcement, taser and firearms instructor.
At a council meeting earlier this year, Buchholz had publicly recommended Millsaps for chief.
Council President Dan Wandersee said they preferred to promote from within because CPD’s current officers do a lot for the community. He noted Millsaps has the most seniority, but council allowed its other officers to apply for the opportunity if desired.
Wandersee said Millsaps has big shoes to fill in replacing Buchholz.
“Ed’s brought a lot to the community, and I think (Millsaps) will do real good,” Wandersee said.
“It’s something we’ve been working for together,” Millsaps said of his promotion.
Millsaps complimented Buchholz’ “great leadership” over 32 years with CPD and plans few changes in operations.
While he has a few ideas for updates, Millsaps wants to get comfortable in his new role and talk with his officers about them before taking action.
“I want to lead with them, I don’t want to be a dictator,” Millsaps said. “I want to make sure they’re good decisions for the entire department.”
When fully staffed, CPD has eight full-time officers, including two school resource officers who can assist with town duties as needed. CPD also has one part-time officer and three reserve officers.
Millsaps grew up surrounded by first responders and respected them.
His dad, Gerald, was then a Centerville officer, and after retiring as a sergeant, Gerald is currently the town’s building commissioner. His mom, Brenda Hoel, was a dispatcher for Wayne County and Indiana State Police. His stepdad, Steve Hoel, stepmom Janyce Millsaps, wife Erika, and daughters, Kinley, 7, and Remi, 4, are also very supportive of his career.
After high school, Millsaps explored other career paths and attended a Bible college, but eventually discovered he wanted to follow in his dad’s footsteps and make his community safer.
“We have the same problems as other communities on a smaller scale,” Millsaps said.
A version of this article appeared in the May 21 2025 print edition of the Western Wayne News.