By Mary O’KEEFE

On Dec. 3 the City of Glendale released a statement regarding the departure of Glendale Police Chief Manny Cid. 

Cid, who has been the GPD chief since January 2023, has accepted the position of police chief with the Anaheim Police Dept. 

“I had not been looking,” Cid said in an interview with CVW. 

He added he was happy with his role as chief at GPD; however, this opportunity “kind of searched me out.” 

At first he was not interested but after “some conversation” and looking at everything the position had to offer he decided to make the move.

“It was a tough decision – really tough – because I’ve really come to love this organization,” he said. “I’ve fallen in love with this community; both the community and the department have been incredibly embracing of me and things are going really well here but it’s an opportunity that gives me a chance to take some big steps forward.”

Another consideration that played a role in Cid’s decision was his current commute to work. Whereas he currently drives an hour and a half to the Glendale Police Dept., he will only be about 20 minutes away in his Anaheim office. This allows him more time with his young children.

“That makes a lot of difference,” he said. 

Anaheim is a larger police department that covers a bigger city and has many “moving parts” including a large tourism audience drawn to Disneyland, the Anaheim Ducks [hockey] and LA Angels [baseball], to name a few attractions. 

“It’s a bigger city with some unique dynamics,” he added, “and there is work that needs to be done at their organization.”

When Cid arrived at GPD he focused on many issues including recruitment but by working with the department and the community, he was able to increase the staff by about 25 new officers.

“With all the humility in the world, it’s less about me and more about the people here. But we’ve gotten a lot done in the last three years,” Cid said. “I think the organization is in as good a place as it has been, maybe ever, but certainly in a long time … And I think you see some of the results of that. Over the last couple of years crime has been significantly decreasing. If you look at the crime numbers from 2023 to where we are now in 2025 you’re talking about a 20% drop across the board. So that is significant.”

He added the GPD team has done a lot to modernize the department in the way of technology and how officers do their work. He contributed a lot to the positive growth with the Real Time Intelligence Center that was launched in late 2024. 

“The Real Time Intelligence Center leverages emerging technologies to provide real-time, actionable intelligence to first responders. This significant investment in public safety represents an unwavering commitment to providing the highest quality of professional policing to Glendale, while striving to be at the forefront of law enforcement,” according to the City of Glendale website. 

Cid will be facing a few challenges in Anaheim.

“The city is in the midst of a lot of growth,” he said. “From a leadership and public safety standpoint there are some unique challenges that come with that, which is exciting.”

Cid said a large part of the success he has seen at GPD and what he will take with him to Anaheim is how important community involvement and support are. 

“At the foundation of all the success that [the GPD] organization has is almost entirely predicated on the support that we get from our community,” he said. 

He added that GPD officers are out working alongside community members and he feels this type of outreach is something that is important for the next chief of GPD. 

The City of Glendale has announced Deputy Chief Robert William will serve as interim police chief. 

“I offered my vote of confidence and support to our current deputy chief, Robert William, to serve as the interim,” Cid said.

Cid’s last day as the Glendale Chief of Police is today, Dec. 18. 

According to a city spokesperson at this time there is no timeline in place regarding the search for a new permanent chief.