With Javaro Sims retiring, here's a look at Delray Beach's new police chief

DELRAY BEACH — Assistant Police Chief Russ Mager will replace Chief Javaro Sims, who is retiring in late August, after serving for 30 years and leading the Delray Beach department at its highest rank for the past three.

Mager, 56, has been with the Delray Beach Police Department for 26 years, holding other leadership roles,  including sergeant in six different sectors and lieutenant – first for the Community Patrol Division and later for the Community Response Division. In 2019, he was promoted by Sims to captain and one year after to assistant chief.

Sims, 62, said he is confident community members can expect a new chief who will be engaged and transparent with them.

Most of Sims’ term as chief was served during the pandemic after he was appointed in May 2019. He focused on maintaining contact with those he was serving, which he did through virtual pizza parties with kids and bicycle deliveries to those excelling in class.

“A leader that refuses or fails to listen to the people that they’re providing services to is a failed leadership,” Sims said. “You’re not going to always like what you hear, but that comes with the territory.”

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Mager will continue to build on these relationships.

Though it varies from city to city, the selection process was fairly simple. City Manager Terrence Moore created an internal posting to which both assistant chiefs, Mager and 15-year veteran of the department Darrell Hunter, applied. Mager was offered the position after interviewing before a panel. Hunter will remain in his role as assistant chief.

Mager was born in Tallahassee but grew up in Pompano Beach and Coconut Creek. He received a bachelor’s degree in criminology with a minor in psychology from Florida State. In 1996, he attended the Broward County Police Academy and then began his law-enforcement career with Delray Police in June of 1996.

Last year, the city’s overall crime rate fell by 19.94%, per the department’s annual report. And the department's Outreach Team, created by Sims in 2018 to address the city’s addiction, homelessness and mental illness, received a $300,000 grant from the Virginia and Harvey Kimmel Foundation to hire additional personnel. Sims secured this grant after noticing there were no governmental grants to address these issues.

Sims was the first African-American to serve as the chief of police in Delray Beach, a city that is 62.8% white, according to the latest U.S. Census. He felt the importance of his role was not only for him, but for all children of color who aspire to become a police chief.

“Them seeing someone that looks like them in that capacity, makes it all more believable,” he said.

Sims' final day will be Aug. 30. Before retiring, though, he  plans to have a National Night Out, which is an annual community-building event between police and community members, on Tuesday, Aug. 2.

Jasmine Fernandez is a journalist covering Delray Beach and Boca Raton at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at jfernandez@pbpost.com and follow her on Twitter at @jasminefernandz. Help support our work. Subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Delray Beach police chief retiring; assistant chief promoted