Police chief who took down Excel shooter begins statewide law enforcement role

Doug Schroeder, the former Hesston police chief who stopped the Excel Industries shooter, has taken over a statewide organization that reviews law enforcement training curriculum and has the authority to investigate and revoke officer licenses.

Schroeder started earlier this month as the executive director of Kansas Commission on Peace Officers’ Standards and Training, or KSCPOST.

The appointment comes in the wake of a tumultuous 2020, where the argument over the role the police play in American life was hotly debated and defunding the police became a national issue.

“Crazy time, but it’s an opportunistic time,” he said. “It’s in the times of crisis where leaders stand up and lead. This is an ideal time for me to take over and to seek those challenges, to have those conversations. I want to be the person that is in the lead when we are in crisis, so I look forward to it.”

He said KSCPOST has been in conversations with Gov. Laura Kelly’s Commission on Racial Equity and Justice about the “hot button” topic of allowing people seeking permanent U.S. citizenship to become officers.

KSCPOST has also been in talks with Kansas Law Enforcement Training Center about training to prevent racial profiling, he said.

“We are going to revisit some of those issues and how we as law enforcement can attain just more professionalism,” he said. “That’s what kind of my position at (KSCPOST) is all about, is promoting the professionalism of Kansas law enforcement.”

As the executive director, the 45-year-old will be in charge of a seven-person staff that investigates complaints and ensures officers complete annual training.

KSCPOST also has a 12-person commission appointed by Kelly to review law enforcement training curriculum. A subset of the commission has the final say on officer licenses after a hearing where evidence is presented.

Wichita City Council member Brandon Johnson chairs the 12-person commission, which is mostly comprised of law enforcement personnel.

“I am excited to have Chief Schroeder become our new Executive Director for KSCPOST,” Johnson said. “(Former executive director Gary Steed) is leaving some pretty large shoes to fill but Chief Schroeder is a well-known and trusted person within the law enforcement community and I believe will provide the leadership needed to continue the great work of the commission.”

Steed, the former Sedgwick County sheriff, retired earlier this year.

Succeeding Steed will not be easy, Schroeder said.

“I can think of few people in the history of Kansas law enforcement that have had a more positive and lasting influence than him,” he said. “I’m just kind of in awe of having the responsibility and getting the opportunity to be his successor.”

Schroeder said he looks forward to the challenge in the new role.

“I wanted something different, I’ve always been a person that has been happiest when I’m challenged,” he said.

While serving as police chief, he earned a master’s degree in criminal justice from Fort Hays State University and completed a 22-week program for law enforcement administration at Northwestern University.

The eight-person Hesston Police Department also had a “tremendous impact” and worked well with the community during his tenure.

Schroeder became nationally known after shooting and killing Cedric Ford, who showed up to his job at Excel Industries with an assault-style rifle and handgun and started shooting coworkers in 2016.

Ford, who had 135 times the standard dose of methamphetamine in his system at the time, killed three people and wounded 14 others.

Schroeder didn’t wait for backup before going into the warehouse and confronting Ford. The two exchanged gunfire but Schroeder was not hit.

“God was with me, no doubt,” Schroeder told The Eagle. “No doubt.”

Former President Donald Trump awarded Schroeder the Medal of Valor for his courage.

In 2020, Schroeder, his wife, Vanessa, and a nurse helped save a man from drowning. The man reportedly hit his head and became trapped unconscious under a dock at Harvey County East Lake.

Schroeder pulled the man from under the dock. His wife and the nurse helped give CPR.

“Between the nurse and Vanessa giving CPR, I don’t think he would’ve been here,” Schroeder told The Eagle. “I mean he wouldn’t be. He was not responsive.”

The man was listed in fair condition at a Wichita hospital a couple weeks after the incident.