Mayor Whitmire Goes Outside for New Police Chief, Says J. Noe Diaz Ticks All the Boxes

Houston Mayor John Whitmire said Friday all conversations about potential hires with local law enforcement agencies, legislators and leaders led him to new Houston Police Chief J. Noe Diaz.

“They kept saying Noe Diaz is the real deal—a crime fighter,” Whitmire noted at the  press conference he called. “That is what I am looking for — a no-nonsense crimefighter with experience.”

Whitmire emphasized the key attributes he searched for in potential candidates: familiarity with Houston and employment outside the Houston Police Department.

Whitmire said he thought it was important “at this period in time,” apparently referencing the shelved cases scandal, to look outside the agency. However, he confirmed that initially, the search included internal candidates.

According to Whitmire, Diaz’s “working knowledge” of every community’s needs and decades-long experience collaborating with multiple Houston area law enforcement agencies made him the right choice.

Diaz most recently led the Katy Police Department, starting there as chief in 2019. Before, most of his 23-year career occurred at the Texas Department of Public Safety.

He served in various roles with the state agency, including as a highway patrol trooper in Katy, within the narcotics division in Houston and the Harris County Organized Crime Task Force.

Whitmire stressed Diaz’s time working in Houston as a Texas Ranger among the “top investigators in the world.” Diaz joined the state agency in 2008 and was a ranger for 11 years.

Diaz also referenced his work with the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Friday. He said this background would help him navigate situations such as the investigation into the department’s use of a “lack of personnel code” that led to the suspension of over 264,000 cases.

Diaz addressed concerns regarding the difference in size between Katy’s and Houston’s police departments. In his new position, he will be in charge of 6,091 employees—or 6,000 more than he led in his previous role.

“It’s not something that I take lightly. It’s very basic,” Diaz said. It’s about servant leadership, whether you have five people at your job—at your company—or 6,200, right? Treating people with respect and dignity and giving [them] the autonomy to do good. There’s only one good and only one right. There are no variations of it.”

Whitmire stepped in to defend Diaz’s capability.

“The buck stops with me. I looked at all facets. I looked at experience, collaboration—yes, he’s in Katy—that was a stopping-off point, [but] they do nothing but sing praise out there,” Whitmire said. I’ve talked to HPD officers, and they’ve worked with him on task forces across the city, and they respected and wanted to work for him.”

The mayor noted that Satterwhite — now taking over as director of the Mayor’s Office of Public Safety and Homeland Security, replacing Tom Muñoz, who left to direct the Houston Fire Department after veteran Chief Sam Peña’s retirement was announced — is not going anywhere. He added that Diaz would have a command staff to help with the transition.

“I considered experience, accountability and integrity. You can’t do any better than this gentleman,” Whitmire said. “He’s not afraid to ask for advice and counsel. I’m not going anywhere and we will definitely be held by the public.”

According to a press release from the Mayor’s office, Whitmire was going to announce other “leadership changes to his public safety team” during Friday’s press conference but did not.

Diaz said he looked forward to discussing technology enhancements that could benefit the department’s operations and encouraged younger people to join the agency.

Diaz is a native Texan who grew up in South Texas and started his law enforcement career in 1986 as a correctional officer. He will take over for Satterwhite, who temporarily filled the role that became abruptly vacant after former Houston Police Chief Troy Finner announced his departure from the department.

Finner retired in the wake of an ongoing investigation into the more than 264,000 shelved cases, the findings of which were released in a report presented by Satterwhite earlier this week.

Satterwhite said the agency found that many of these cases involved sexual assaults or violent crimes.

Whitmire referenced the scandal on Friday, saying that the department would not be “dragged through a mess he inherited” that shook people’s confidence. He said those “days are over,” and it was about getting the work required done.

“That’s what I really want you to take away from here today,” Whitmire said. “A fresh start.”

Diaz’s first day serving as chief will be on Wednesday, August 14, after Houston City Council approves his appointment.