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Erica Burke pins his badge on John Burke after he is sworn in as Barrington’s new police chief Monday.
Steve Zalusky/szalusky@dailyherald.com
John Burke.
Courtesy of the village of Barrington
Barrington has reached within its own ranks in choosing the new police chief.
John Burke was sworn in at Monday’s Barrington village board meeting. He succeeds David Dorn, who left to become Elk Grove Village’s police chief.
Burke, 52, is a 23-year veteran of the department. He began as a patrol officer and rose through the ranks to detective, then patrol sergeant in 2013 and finally deputy chief in 2016.
He has also been commander of the Northern Illinois Police Alarm System’s Emergency Services Team for 21 years.
Burke grew up in Arlington Heights and attended Rolling Meadows High School.
Coming from a family with strong ties to law enforcement, he said, “I’ve always had an interest in helping people.”
He holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Illinois State University and a master’s degree in Law Enforcement and Justice Administration from Western Illinois University.
He graduated from the FBI National Academy in 2024 and the Northwestern University Police School of Staff and Command in 2013.
“That’s a leadership and management course that the FBI offers,” he said. His class gave him the opportunity to work for 10 weeks in Quantico, Virginia, with law enforcement executives from more than 40 states and 20 countries.
In addition to working on the Barrington force, Burke said he worked for the federal government for the Department of Homeland Security as a special agent with the U.S. Customs Service based in San Diego.
Barrington, Burke said, “is a great town to work in,” adding that it is “very supportive of police officers and the police department in general.”
Having been deputy chief since 2016, he said he feels in tune with the needs of the village and school district.
“I am confident that under his guidance, Barrington will continue to be a safe and vibrant community for all,” Village President Karen Darch said.
“He’ll do great,” said former Chief Dorn, who was commended for his tenure at Monday’s meeting. “He has all the talent in the world and the experience. He’s a longtime deputy chief. And he loves Barrington.”
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