The city administrator of Louisiana is taking over the managerial duties of the police department.

The city council has named Bob Jenne as police chief. He succeeds Richard Hughes, who died at age 43 of apparent natural causes on July 3rd. Detective April Epperson had served as interim chief.

The vote was four in favor and one opposed, with Councilman Don Oakley casting the dissenting ballot. Jenne will not get a pay increase in his current salary of about 78 thousand dollars.

The city administrator has four decades of experience in fighting crime and once served as police chief and emergency management coordinator in a city near St. Louis.