The Montgomery County Department of Police is pleased to announce that Assistant Chief Russell E. Hamill, III, will become Acting Chief of Police for Montgomery County beginning March 31, 2019.  Chief Hamill will serve as the Acting Chief of Police whilst a nationwide search to replace retiring Chief J. Thomas Manger is completed.  Chief Hamill previously served as the Assistant Chief of the Management Services Bureau and the Investigative Services Bureau.

Additionally, the department is announcing that Commander Dinesh Patil will serve as the Acting Assistant Chief of Police in charge of the Management Services Bureau beginning March 31, 2019.  Commander Patil previously served as the Commander of the 6th District in Gaithersburg/Montgomery Village.

Biographical Information

Assistant Chief Russell E. Hamill, III

Assistant Chief Russell E. Hamill, III, has been a member of the Montgomery County Police Department since 1986.  He served for nearly three years as a Montgomery County Deputy Sheriff before joining the department.  After graduating from the Public Safety Training Academy, he was assigned to the 1st District as a patrol officer where he was also assigned to the Lincoln Park Community Policing Team (the department's first effort at community policing), and then the Special Assignment Team.  He was then assigned to the Special Investigations Division as a detective in the Drug Investigations Unit.

In November of 1994, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant where his assignments included serving as a Sergeant in the Drug Enforcement Section of the Special Investigations Division, supervisor of the Police Community Action Team (PCAT), in the 5th and 2nd Districts as a shift Sergeant, at the Public Safety Training Academy as the Training Development/Critical Skills Supervisor, and as an Administrative Sergeant for the Investigative Services Bureau and Chiefs Office. 

In November of 2001, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and assigned as the Deputy Commander of the 1st District.  Subsequently, he was assigned as the Deputy Director of the Special Investigations Division, Drug Enforcement Section.   

In November of 2004, he was promoted to the rank of Captain and appointed as the Director of the Criminal Investigations Division.  In 2006 he successfully completed the Maryland Leadership Challenge program and graduated from the FBI National Academy, Session 227.  In August of 2007, he assumed command of the 2nd District.

On September 2, 2011, then Commander Hamill was nominated by then County Executive Isiah Leggett for an appointment to the rank of Assistant Chief of Police and the appointment was approved by the County Council shortly thereafter.  Acting Chief Hamill served as the Chief of Detectives until October of 2017 and as Chief of the Management Services Bureau since that time.  He also completed the Major Cities Chiefs Association Police Executive Leadership Institute program and the Police Executive Research Forum Senior Management Institute for Police during that time.

Now Acting Chief of Police Hamill is a life-long resident of Montgomery County.  He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Maryland, and a Juris Doctorate from Howard University.  He is married and has five children.

Commander Dinesh Patil

Commander Dinesh Patil was born and raised in Montgomery County and started his connection with the Montgomery County Police as a police explorer in 1988.  Commander Patil was hired by MCPD in 1994 and served in the Silver Spring District from 1994-2004 as a patrol officer, mountain bike officer, Special Assignment Team officer and Corporal.  Commander Patil transferred to the Wheaton / Glenmont District upon his promotion to Sergeant in 2004 but returned to the Silver Spring Special Assignment Team in 2005 where he remained until his promotion to Lieutenant in 2008.

As a Lieutenant, Commander Patil has served in the Management Services Bureau, Special Investigations Division and the Emergency Response Team Command Staff.  He was promoted to Captain in 2012 and in that role has served as the Duty Commander, Director of the Personnel Division, Director of the Special Investigations Division and most recently as the Commander of the Sixth District.  Commander Patil also serves as the Project Director for the National Capital Area Law Enforcement Information Exchange (NCR-LInX), and serves as Vice Chairman for the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments Police Chief’s Technology Committee.Commander Patil holds a Bachelor of Science in Management and a Master’s of Science in Homeland Security Management from the University of Maryland.  Commander Patil graduated from the FBI National Academy Session 271 in 2018.