A former Moniteau County sheriff and a former member of the Jefferson City Police Department have been named to two top positions in the Missouri Department of Public Safety.
Kenny Jones is the new deputy director of DPS, and Ron Walker is the new director of the State Emergency Management Agency, DPS Director Sandy Karsten announced Tuesday.
Jones served as chairman of the Missouri Board of Probation and Parole until his resignation Monday, according to a DPS news release. He had been a member of the board since 2012.
Jones served as Moniteau County sheriff from 1985-2004 and, before that, was a member of the Missouri Highway Patrol from 1973-84. He also served in the Missouri House of Representatives District 117 from 2005-10.
Walker had served as deputy director of the State Emergency Management Agency since February 2017. This is his second stint as SEMA director; his first was from July 2014 to February 2017. During Walker's tenure, SEMA had responsibility for the state's response to and recovery from four federally declared major disasters.
Walker began his career in law enforcement as a member of the Jefferson City Police Department in 1977, then was appointed to the Missouri Highway Patrol in 1978 and rose to the rank of captain before retiring in 2013.