It is our pleasure to welcome Captain Maureen Ryan as the new commanding officer of LAPD’s Topanga Division which covers Canoga Park, West Hills, Winnetka, and Woodland Hills. Captain Ryan is a Los Angeles native, raised in the Pacific Area. She holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Education degrees from Loyola Marymount University. She completed […]
It is our pleasure to welcome Captain Maureen Ryan as the new commanding officer of LAPD’s Topanga Division which covers Canoga Park, West Hills, Winnetka, and Woodland Hills.
Captain Ryan is a Los Angeles native, raised in the Pacific Area. She holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Education degrees from Loyola Marymount University. She completed her undergraduate work at Loyola University, in Rome, Italy. Captain Ryan taught elementary school in Brentwood and Lennox for seven years before joining the Los Angeles Police Department in January 1988. After graduating from the academy at the top of her class, she worked a variety of assignments in West Los Angeles, Valley Traffic and Van Nuys Divisions.
In 1992, she was promoted to Police Officer III+I, and was the first woman assigned to Valley Traffic Detectives. Captain Ryan promoted to Detective in 1994 and was assigned to Hollywood and West Valley Divisions. Captain Ryan promoted up the detective ranks at both Robbery-Homicide Division and Critical Incident Investigation Division. Captain Ryan carried on her supervisory role as a Detective III working Force Investigation Division. She was promoted to Lieutenant in May 2005 and was assigned to Hollenbeck Patrol as a Watch Commander. In May 2006, Captain Ryan became the Detective Watch Commander at Hollenbeck Detectives where she remained until her promotion to Captain in July 2008.
Upon her promotion to Captain, she was selected to be the Patrol Commanding Officer of the new Topanga Division. Captain Ryan is the first female Captain to open a new division in LAPD history before moving to take over a Commanding Officer of the West Valley Traffic Division.
Captain Ryan has served as an instructor in Sexual Assault and Major Assault Crimes Schools, Basic Detective and Detective Supervisor School, Sergeant and Watch Commander Schools, and the Robert Presley Institute of Criminal Investigation Course. She has provided training for several organizations that provide Rape Hotline counseling and advocacy for survivors of sexual assault. Captain Ryan holds two certificates from the Robert Presley Institute of Criminal Investigation, one in Homicide and the other in Sexual Assault Investigations. Captain Ryan is a graduate of the Sherman Block Supervisory Leadership Institute and the West Point Leadership Program.
She is a member of several professional law enforcement organizations, including the California Homicide Investigators’ Association, the California Sexual Assault Investigators’ Association and the Los Angeles Women Police Officers Association.
https://www.lapdonline.org/lapd_command_staff/comm_bio_view/38759
