New St. Charles Police Chief Daniel J. Likens said he wants to bring a fresh perspective to the police force with his nearly 30 years of experience.

Likens is no stranger to the Kane County area. He started his law enforcement career policing the Randall Road corridor 29 years ago.

“I believe strongly in good relationships, so that’s something I hope to build and earn trust, starting from day one,” Likens said. “I’m going to do a lot of listening, early and often, and come in with a fresh perspective.”

Formerly a lieutenant colonel with the Illinois State Police, Likens was appointed by Mayor Clint Hull on Sept. 2. He will assume his new role as the head of the St. Charles Police Department on Sept. 15. A swearing-in ceremony will be on Nov. 3. The mayor said the priorities Likens shared during the interview process made him the clear choice.

“We’re just very very excited that the search is over,” Hull said. “We’ve had a great history of having great police chiefs and Dan fits right in.”

Hull said St. Charles residents should be excited about their new chief for two reasons: his wealth of experience and the passion he has for the job and community.

“His experience is off the charts,” Hull said. “We’re bringing somebody in who supervised over 500 employees with the Illinois State Police, so we have the best of the best, which is what St. Charles deserves.”

Hull said he believes Likens is approachable, a good communicator and likable. He said everyone, from residents to city staff, wants a police chief they can relate to and speak with.

“We want somebody that’s going to be innovative, passionate and energetic, and he checks all those boxes.”

—  Mayor Clint Hull

“He had a lot of choices in people who wanted him to come and lead their departments, and he chose St. Charles,” Hull said. “He’s got a lot of energy and a lot of great ideas, and he’s looking forward to hitting the ground running, and that’s something that was important to the council and important, I think, to residents as well. We want somebody that’s going to be innovative, passionate and energetic, and he checks all those boxes.”

Likens was born and raised in the western Chicago suburbs, where he now lives with his wife and their 7-year-old son. He holds a bachelor’s degree in management from Benedictine University in Lisle and an associate’s degree in criminal justice from the College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn.

Likens said he knew from a young age that he wanted to be a cop, having grown up in a law enforcement family. His father was a volunteer reserve officer with the Bolingbrook Police Department, where he retired as commander.

Likens’ siblings were also called to law enforcement. One of his younger sisters now serves in their father’s former role as Bolingbrook police commander, and another works for the Kendall County State’s Attorney’s Office. He has an older brother who is an artificial intelligence engineer.

“I was exposed to it at a young age,” Likens said. “I wanted to be in a career of service and a career that I felt like I could give back to the community, that I wouldn’t get bored of, and every day brought a new challenge.”

Likens said the puzzles and challenges of the job are what drew him to the career.

“I have a mind that likes to problem solve, and I thought that this would give me that opportunity,” Likens said. “It presents unique challenges, and it’s ever changing and evolving.”

Likens got his first taste of law enforcement during an internship with the Bolingbrook Police Department. Then he worked as a booking officer with the DuPage County Sheriff’s Office corrections division.

His first sworn position was as an ISP patrol trooper stationed in Elgin in 1997. He served on a special enforcement team in Kane and DeKalb counties from 2006 to 2009, focused on fatal traffic accident reduction and traffic enforcement.

Likens was promoted to sergeant in 2006, master sergeant in 2009, lieutenant in 2015 and captain in 2021. In 2023, he was appointed assistant deputy director of ISP’s Division of Criminal Investigations, a statewide post.

Before that, Likens held the rank of major and served as investigative commander for Northern Illinois while simultaneously serving on the Chicago area Unified Command, combating expressway crime.

Likens has served as a field training officer, an emergency vehicle operations instructor and a member of the crowd control team. He has commanded special enforcement teams and task forces for crime scene investigations, violent crimes, auto theft, drug trafficking and undercover narcotics operations.

He earned life-saving awards from ISP and served on special details, including leading teams of state troopers during the past two presidential inaugurations in Washington, D.C.

“I’ve had a great career,” Likens said. “I’ve had a lot of fun, and I’ve gotten to do a lot of fun things.”

Of all his accomplishments, Likens said one of his proudest was receiving the Franklin M. Kreml Leadership Award while attending the staff and command leadership program at Northwestern University’s Center for Public Safety. He said that recognition was special because its recipients are nominated by their peers.

Likens said he was drawn to St. Charles because of his past experiences with the community, in which he found it to be very supportive and forward-thinking.

He said in a way it feels like he’s returning to his old stomping grounds, though a lot has changed since he last patrolled Randall Road.

“It’s a much different town from what I knew 29 years ago when I started,” Likens said. “It’s not such a rural community that it used to be. It’s booming.”

Likens has also served in advisory positions on a number of ISP boards and task forces, including the South Suburban Major Crimes Task Force and the Statewide Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee.

While he will transition out of most of his advisory positions, Likens will remain on the executive board of the Illinois Homicide Investigators Association. He said he hopes to get involved in several local boards in Kane County.

Likens said he believes law enforcement is changing. He said ensuring that the department leverages technology appropriately and with the proper guardrails is an important part of preparing St. Charles Police Department to run efficiently into the future.

“I can’t wait to get to work. I’m excited to be part of the community, to get to know people and really just immerse myself in it,” Likens said. “They have a great department already, so I just hope to bring my background and my experience to help out in any way that I can, to make them feel safe and comfortable in St. Charles.”

Likens said he has already received many kind messages and welcome calls from community members, police, staff and city officials, which says a lot about the area.

“It’s been really heartwarming to be welcomed in the way that I have been so far,” Likens said. “It’s going to be a great place to come work and grind, and I look forward to that.”