New police chief gets an early start

Grafton officials and police department members welcomed Jeff Caponera as their new chief on Monday, Sept. 7, when he was sworn in two weeks ahead of schedule. 

“I’m extremely honored and proud to be here in the Village of Grafton,” Caponera said during the ceremony at the police station.

“As you will get to know me over time, you will see I treat everyone as family, and that’s the way we operate and treat members of our community.” 

Caponera most recently served as the police chief of the City of Anna, Texas, a post he held since 2018.

Caponera, 47, has nearly 25 years of law-enforcement experience in the Dallas and Denver metropolitan areas. He is a second-generation police officer. 

Caponera began his career in 1995 with the Adams County Sheriff’s Office in Colorado, where he worked for two years. From there, he moved to the police department in the City of Thornton, where he remained until 2003 when he and his wife Janna moved to Texas. 

Caponera worked with the Collin County Constable’s Office in Texas from 2005 to 2008 before accepting a sergeant position in the City of Anna, where he had worked since.

Caponera was scheduled to begin working in Grafton on Sept. 21, but said he was able to find housing in Germantown earlier than expected. The village requires the police chief to live within a 20-mile radius of the community.