Rocklin hires Del Oro High graduate, law enforcement veteran as new police chief

The city of Rocklin named its new chief of police Thursday.

Rustin Banks, a former captain for the Solano County Sheriff’s Office and Marine Corps veteran, will take the helm of Rocklin’s police force starting Monday.

Banks is a long-time resident of Placer County. He is a graduate of Del Oro High School in Loomis, and has worked as an adjunct criminal justice professor at Sierra College. He has worked in law enforcement since 2005.

“It will be my honor and privilege to lead the Rocklin Police Department, an agency that is known far and wide for their high level of professionalism and community engagement,” Banks said in a statement. “I am eager to build upon the strong foundation the members of this Department have worked so hard to create.”

“I have spent my entire professional career living in Placer County and serving a community nearly 70 miles away,” he added. “This feels like a homecoming because for the first time, I will be serving the community that my family and I have been a part of for over 20 years.”

Banks worked his way through the ranks at the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, including serving in patrol, narcotics, and as a detective, professional standards supervisor and watch commander. He also spent 12 years on the special weapons and tactics team (SWAT). And in his time as captain, Banks was loaned to the Rio Vista Police Department to serve as interim police chief from September 2019 to February 2020.

“The standard of public safety in Rocklin is high and Chief Banks will help the department continue to grow and improve,” Mayor Jill Gayaldo said in a statement. “We welcome him to ‘Team Rocklin’ and I can’t wait to see his reaction to the community support Rocklin PD receives!”

The city plans to host a community meeting early next year, where the public can meet Banks. Details have not yet been announced.