Veteran KC officer to lead Gardner police

A veteran Kansas City police major has been named as the new police chief of Gardner.

James Pruetting will take over as chief of the fast-growing Johnson County city later this month.

The Gardner City Council on Monday night voted unanimously to hire Pruetting to fill the position that has been vacant since the previous chief’s resignation last June.

Gardner Mayor Chris Morrow said Pruetting was chosen after an “exhaustive” search and brings a wealth of experience to the job.

“His qualifications fit what we were looking for to a T,” Morrow said Tuesday.

Tony Rizzo, trizzo@kcstar.com

This story was originally published February 17, 2015 at 11:56 AM with the headline "Veteran KC officer to lead Gardner police."