How safe are we in Lexington? Today this “top of mind” issue will be addressed by two experts, one from the public sector, one from the private sector.
Chief Lawrence Weathers
Lexington’s Chief Lawrence B. Weathers is a native of Lexington Kentucky. He joined the Lexington Division of Police in 1989. He has a Masters of Science Degree in Criminal Justice from Eastern Kentucky University and graduated from the University of Kentucky with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration.
He began his police career as a patrol officer and has worked as a supervisor in every Bureau of the Lexington Police Department from his promotion to Sergeant in 1997 through his appointment to Assistant Chief in 2014.
In July of 2016 Assistant Chief Weathers was selected as the Director of Law Enforcement for Fayette County Public Schools. As the Director of Law Enforcement, he was responsible for the safety and security of all Fayette County Public School students, staff, and visitors, as well as their properties.
On March 4, 2018 Lawrence Weathers was sworn in as Chief of Police of the Lexington Police Department. The Lexington Police Department has over 600 sworn Officers and over 80 Civilian employees. As Chief of Police, he is responsible for responding to the public safety needs and concerns for all of the citizens of Fayette County.
Chief Weathers is a certified Police Instructor, a member of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (N.O.B.L.E) and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (I.A.C.P.). Chief Weathers also volunteers to assist with educating parents and youth about the effects illicit drugs and violence has on our community.
Chief Weathers is married and has three children.
He is joined today by David Ashford, the President and CEO of Integrated Security Solutions and CEO of APB Consulting Solutions.
Integrated Security Solutions (ISS) is a woman and veteran owned business headquartered in Nicholasville Kentucky, specializing in physical security needs such as video surveillance, access control and alarms. Strongly centered in the retail and commercial security market, ISS supports over 30,000 locations across the United States. A Kentucky native, David began his career as a US Marine, serving for ten years as a Military Policeman and weapons instructor (active and reserve). Following the Marines, he transitioned to civilian law enforcement as a Beaufort Police officer and later a Deputy Sherriff with Fayette County, ultimately joining the Lexington Division of Police and retiring as a Sergeant in 2012. David’s areas of focus and experience during his time with Lexington police included patrol, Emergency Response Unit special operations team member and instructor, recruit training academy instructor/supervisor, and Assistant Commander of the Honor Guard.
One of the courses David developed was the active shooter response training curriculum and related department policy. David was later tasked with building the advanced active short training curriculum and trained 1,000+ officers to respond to this type of incident. In 2010, David joined Integrated Security Solutions President and CEO of leading a dedicated staff of 45 team members.
In 2018 David joined APB Consulting Solutions as a member/partner with a focus of helping businesses prepare to deal with active shooter threats in the workplace, facility threat assessments, training, and related technology.
David currently serves as the Chair of the Bluegrass Crimestoppers board, serving the greater Bluegrass area of Kentucky. David, a native Kentuckian, is married to his wife Kristin, and they have four children and a beautiful granddaughter. On days off, they enjoy exercising, hiking, gardening, and traveling.