Chief Sam Kittrell

As police chief of the Orange Police Department Sam Kittrell has set a record of being the longest-serving head of a law enforcement agency in Orange County’s history. He was born and raised in Orange, Texas. Kittrell’s parents were Claude and Doris Kittrell. He attended Anderson Elementary, Carr Junior High and Stark High School, where he was graduated with the Class of 1970. After high school, he took classes at “Tilley Tech,” the then-new college run by Lamar Tech in the old Riverside school. He continued his education and earned his bachelor’s degree from Lamar University. He joined the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in 1973 at the age of 20 and first worked as a dispatcher, jailer and patrol deputy. Prior to working in the sheriff’s office, he went to work at the Vidor Police Department, eventually working his way to assistant chief. He broke the case of the 1976 murder of an on-duty Dallas police officer in a case that 12 years later would bring Kittrell a bit of fame. A documentary film maker, Errol Morris, made the movie “The Thin Blue Line.” He served as Orange city manager prior to being named police chief in 1987. He has hired more minorities and women in the police department than any other time in the department’s history. With all his years in law enforcement, he still worries about his officers, particularly at night, before he goes to sleep. He knows the job can be dangerous, even in the daylight, but it’s at night when he worries the most.