Gov. Bill Lee has named Christopher Hansen interim commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Correction, putting a longtime probation and parole official in charge of the state's prison and supervision system after the previous commissioner resigned following a failed execution.
Who Hansen is
Hansen currently serves as TDOC's assistant commissioner of community supervision, overseeing probation and parole. According to the governor's office, he will hold both roles, effective immediately. He joined the department in 2023. Before that, he was chief probation officer and director of the Solano County Probation Department in California and chief U.S. probation officer for the District of Nevada. He also held leadership and public safety roles with the U.S. Probation Office in Florida, the University of South Florida Police Department and the Florida Department of Corrections.
"Chris Hansen is a committed public servant with decades of experience in corrections and public safety," Lee said. "His knowledge of the Tennessee Department of Correction makes him uniquely qualified to lead, and I am grateful for his willingness to serve Tennesseans during this transition."
Why the post was open
Former Commissioner Frank Strada resigned in October, after the botched Sept. 30 execution of Christa Pike. At Lee's request, the Tennessee Attorney General's Office has hired former U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton to conduct an independent review of how the department carried out the court-ordered sentence.
The announcement did not say how long Hansen's interim service would last or whether he is a candidate for the permanent job.
Sources: WBBJ-TV, WVLT