Suffolk County gets its first female police chief with Revere appointment

Revere appointed Maria LaVita as the department’s, and Suffolk County’s, first female chief of police last Monday, according to a press release. 

LaVita was unanimously appointed as Revere’s 27th police chief and had been serving as the interim chief of police since June 3 when Chief David Callahan announced his retirement. 

“Chief LaVita is the most qualified person to lead the Revere Police Department into the future,” Mayor of Revere Patrick Keefe said in the release. “Today is a proud day for the city of Revere. I am confident in the ability of the Revere Police Department to serve our residents under Chief LaVita’s leadership.”

LaVita told Boston.com her appointment is “quite an honor” and it is “surreal” to be named chief in the town where she was “born and raised.”

“We are continuing to hire women and other minorities so it’s a great time to be given this position,” she said.

In her role, LaVita will focus on establishing “trust through community policing and leveraging the latest in policing technology to ensure the department is applying best practices of 21st century policing,” according to the release.

“Policing is evolving every day to meet the needs of the community so I will be on top of every trend that I can and make sure that our training is in line with the community’s needs,” LaVita said.

LaVita joined the Revere police force in 1996 and was named sergeant in 2011, lieutenant in 2017, and captain in 2021. With nearly 30 years on the force, LaVita spent 16 years as a superior officer, nine years as a detective, and the last eight years as the commander of the Criminal Investigation Division, according to the release. 

“I’ve known her from the day she started the job, and watched her grow through the ranks. No matter what job she has been given, whether it be patrol, special assignment, and so on, she always does her job, and does it above and beyond,” Revere City Councillor and former police Sgt. Chris Giannino said in the release. 

“I feel like I’m evolving with the city,” LaVita said acknowledging Revere Beach’s development to become a modernized version of the destination attraction that it once was.

A proud Revere High Patriot from the graduating class of 1992, LaVita is a Massachusetts native to her core: earning her bachelor’s degree at Fitchburg State, her master’s in criminal justice administration from Western New England, and her law degree from New England Law. 

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