Former Denver Police Chief Paul Pazen announced his bid for the District 2 City Council seat to be vacated by Kevin Flynn in 2027.

Flynn is term-limited.

Pazen, who began his law enforcement career in 1995 with the Denver Police Department, rose through the ranks to become the agency’s chief, retiring in 2022 after close to three decades of service.

“I’m running for city council for many reasons,” Pazen told a crowd of about 70 people gathered on Wednesday at the Cultivar Cafe on West Yale Avenue.

“Council District 2 has a long, rich history of strong, stable leadership that goes back decades,” he said. “If you look at the people that have served in this seat, they generally serve on multiple terms. That is a foundation, and that is a legacy that I want to build upon in order to serve the people of southwest Denver.”

Pazen, a graduate of North High School, served in the Marine Corps.

As Denver’s top cop for four years, Pazen launched an initiative nicknamed “hot spot policing,” which focuses department resources in areas that, the police said, experienced a disproportionate share of Denver’s homicides and shootings. 

At the time, Pazen said the idea was to prevent crime, rather than just respond to it. The effort drew criticism from people who said it leads to over-policing of poor communities and people of color. Others lauded it, saying it worked. Back in 2022, the police said gun violence decreased in four of the five “hot spots” in the year before.

He also supported the city’s STAR program, which dispatches some to low-risk 911 calls away from police officers and to a mental health team instead.

“You can’t serve the people if you don’t know the people,” District 2 Councilmember Kevin Flynn said. “And that’s where I think Paul brings a lot of experience, a lot of know-how, because he’s been here for so long, and I appreciate that someone with his experience, with his knowledge of city government, is willing to step up and serve the community again.”

Outlining his campaign goals, Pazen said he plans to “focus on safe and affordable neighborhoods, public safety that is smart, fair and community focused, affordable housing that focuses on the people that live here, as well as preserving these amazing neighborhoods that we have in southwest Denver.”

Pazen’s other priorities include strengthening both current and future jobs and businesses, as well as services and safeguarding parks. 

“And lastly, veterans and seniors,” Pazen said. “Our veterans and our seniors have given so much to our community, we need to make sure that we take care of them.”

Pazen was police chief during the protests following the death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis officers. 

In early 2022, the city lost a $13.75 million trial judgment in a landmark federal excessive force lawsuit over how the police department handled the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests. 

The city has appealed the court’s ruling and the case is still pending.

Pazen has frequently criticized state policies concerning pretrial release, supervision and sentencing reforms, which he believes are too lenient. A Denver Gazette investigation found nearly half of the people arrested for homicides in Denver in 2020 and 2021 were under some kind of pretrial supervision at the time.

Denver’s Municipal General Election will be held on April 6, 2027. Should a runoff be needed, that would set for June 1, 2027, according to the Office of the Denver Clerk and Recorder.