History of the BVPD

From the founding of Bay Village in 1903 until 1941, the chief law enforcement officer in the city was the Marshall. On April 6, 1903, Frank C. Sites was appointed Marshall of Bay Village as a part-time position, followed by Carl M. Geyer.   It wasn’t until June 12, 1923 that the city hired Harvey A. Yoder as the first full-time Marshall.  Following Yoder’s sudden death, Deputy John P. Eaton was appointed Marshall on July 27, 1925.  Marshall Eaton was elected to eight consecutive terms as Marshall and on September 5, 1941, became Chief of Police.  Bay Village’s first police department consisted of Chief Eaton and two full time officers: Clifford Mercer and William Serne.  

Bay Village Chiefs of Police


Bay Village Chief of Police 
Appointed 
Retired 
John P. Eaton July 27, 1925August 31, 1960 
Jay HubachSeptember 1, 1960October 24, 1964
Fred F. DrenkhanJanuary 1, 1965February 29, 1976
Peter Gray March 13, 1976April 26, 1985
William (Bill) Gareau May 20, 1985December 1, 1995 
David Wright January 16, 1996June 23, 2013 
Mark SpaetzelNovember 1, 2013June 1, 2020
Kathy Leasure June 2, 2020
May 1, 2021