Ocean Springs Appoint Interim Police Chief, Mark Dunston

Ocean Springs Police Department has appointed an Interim Police Chief after long time Chief, Lionel Cothern, retired earlier this month.

It was announced Tuesday night at the Board of Aldermen meeting in Ocean Springs that Mark Dunston will be his temporary replacement. Dunston has been in law enforcement for 31 years and served as the Deputy Chief under Chief Cothern for seven and a half years. Dunston says that not only was Chief Cothern a beloved colleague, but he was also a close friend.

Dunston says, "Well we’re really going to miss Chief Cothern. I shouldn’t even call him Chief Cothern, I call him Lionel. He’s been my friend for over three decades and he’s a good man. There’s a lot of great programs that Chief Cothern started, so there’s going to be a lot of continuation of that and we’ll have to wait and see what direction the city wants to go as far as selecting a Chief and we’ll go to the future from there."

Dunston says he has not yet decided if he’s going to apply for a permanent spot as Police Chief.