The Dallas Police Department, established in 1881, is the principal law enforcement agency serving the city of Dallas, Texas.
The department is headed by a chief of police who is appointed by the city manager

City manager

A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a council-manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief executive officer or chief administrative officer in some municipalities...

 who, in turn, is hired by the Dallas City Council

Dallas City Hall

Dallas City Hall is the seat of Dallas municipal government, located at 1500 Marilla in the Government District of downtown Dallas, Texas...

. The city manager

City manager

A city manager is an official appointed as the administrative manager of a city, in a council-manager form of city government. Local officials serving in this position are sometimes referred to as the chief executive officer or chief administrative officer in some municipalities...

 is not an elected official.

Primary responsibility for calls for police service are seven operations divisions based on geographical subdivisions of the city.