BATON ROUGE - Thomas Morse Jr, preferably referred to as "TJ," but now known to all as chief, was sworn in as the head of the Baton Rouge Police Department Tuesday morning.

The ceremony at BRPD headquarters was standing room only, despite subfreezing temperatures and closed roadways.

Morse takes the reins from Murphy Paul, who retired from the position after six years following controversy surrounding a rogue street team division.

The former special response team commander says he plans to champion transparency and accountability within the department, as well as advocating for officers' mental health.

"I pledge to also guide our agency toward the tenants of 21st century policing--focusing deeply on transparency and engagement with the entire baton rouge community. As your new baton rouge chief of police, I choose to dedicate a great amount of time in my first 100 days to listening and learning," said Morse.

Morse has worked at BRPD for 20 years and has good relationships with officers in the department.
He got emotional when addressing them this morning.

"TTo the men and women of the Baton Rouge Police Department, it would be a true honor to serve as your chief and lead this amazing department that I love. I will always strive to show everyone that the Baton Rouge Police Department is full of some of the best criminal justice professionals in the country."