KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The University of Tennessee Police Department has a new assistant chief, a 20-year-plus veteran from New York City.
Chief Troy Lane announced Wednesday that Sean Patterson will start April 1. He'll oversee day-to-day department operations.
Patterson is a lieutenant with the New York Police Department. His jobs have included directing a task force that oversees safety of the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade.
He is training coordinator for NYPD's Emergency Service Unit, which performs tactical rescues.
Patterson is a Navy veteran and a native of Staten Island, one of New York's five boroughs.
Patterson's wife, Anaida, is a K-9 handler with the Police Department's Emergency Service K-9 Team. The Pattersons have two children.
Patterson fills the job formerly held by Keith Lambert, a longtime employee.
Lambert last July pulled up to the wrong house in Hardin Valley, thinking it was the one he and his wife had just purchased.
He confronted the residents, thinking they were intruders, and pulled a pistol from his waistband, an investigation showed.
Lambert scared the family including two children who were present. He left after realizing his mistake.
Lambert was put on leave and resigned. The next-door homeowners are now suing Lambert and his wife.
