(KAIR)--Following years of law enforcement service, becoming what Jackson County Sheriff Tim Morse calls “one of the longest serving Undersheriff’s in Jackson County history,” Darrel Chapman steps down from the position.

According to a release from Morse, that happened Wednesday, with Chapman stepping down “after having a distinguished career in Jackson County.”

Chapman has served as the Hoyt Chief of Police, a police officer with the Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation Police Department, and servedm prior to becoming Undersheriff, as a Sergeant with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.

According to the release, Morse appointed Chapman to serve as Undersheriff in 2011, and calls it “one of the best decisions [he’s made in his] life,” adding that Chapman “was one of the secrets of [the Sheriff’s Department’s] success in reducing crime and building one of the most successful rural county police agencies in Kansas.”

 On Thursday, the release notes, Morse received the KBI crime statistics for Jackson County for 2021, with the Sheriff saying that “burglary statistics are in the single digits, which is the first time in decades and the lowest since” Morse began working in law enforcement, adding that “Chapman played a major part in making this happen.”

Morse, Friday, announced that he has appointed Captain Scott Morris to serve as Undersheriff, replacing Chapman, who is, according to a release, pursuing a new career in the private sector. 

Morris is a longtime resident of Jackson County where he raised his three children with his wife Paula.  Scott

Morris for the last two years has served as the Captain of Patrol with the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office and was a part of the Sheriff’s Leadership Team.  During this time, Captain Morris also oversaw the office’s K-9 Program. Prior to coming to the sheriff’s office, Morris retired after a lengthy career with the Kansas Highway Patrol where he obtained the rank of Captain.