Biloxi Police Chief John Miller reflects on career ahead of retirement

BILOXI, Miss. (WXXV) — For more than three decades, Biloxi Police Chief John Miller has served the streets of his city, but that’s all set to change in mid-January as he embarks on a new journey: retirement.

“It’s very rewarding, you know, you go home at night and you know you’ve done something… you feel like you’ve done something good for the community,” Miller said.

Miller will never forget December 19th, 1990: it’s the day he first joined the Biloxi Police Department. Since that day, he’s seen plenty of change in the community. Miller was named the city’s newest police chief in 2009, but he didn’t follow the conventional route as he moved up the ranks.

“Well, it was a little scary, because I didn’t have a chance to be assistant chief,” Miller explained. “I was a captain running criminal investigations when I got this job.”

As for what he’ll miss the most about his job, Miller told WXXV that it’s undoubtedly the people he’s met along the way.

“When I became chief, it was… you know, there’s no way that you could do that by yourself, so it’s taken a lot of help from a lot of people for me to actually be an effective chief,” Miller explained. “I appreciate that very much.”

From Cruisin’ the Coast festivities to Mardi Gras parades, Miller has been an ever-present force in the community. Although leadership might change, he shares that he’s confident that the way his department serves Biloxi won’t change.

“They’re not going to miss a beat,” Miller said, praising his administration and fellow officers. “They’re going to do a great job, and the citizens should not have to worry about that, and I don’t think that they do. I think it’s going to be business as usual.”