Mitchell J. Brown returned
to Council in January 2023. He retired in 2021 after serving several years as a
councilmember. Brown is fulfilling the unexpired term of former Councilmember
Elizabeth Brown.
He began his public service career
as a paramedic. In the late 60’s, he championed a radical emergency medical
response protocol designed to provide pre-hospital emergency care to residents
in Pittsburgh, PA. This effort sparked a medical revolution. The experiment
known as “Freedom House,” was the beginning of today’s modern paramedic and
ambulance response system.
A decade later, he took that same passion and
commitment to excellence to Cleveland, Ohio, where he served as the
Commissioner for Emergency Medical Services in the Department of Public Safety.
There, Brown developed and implemented the Paramedic Training Institute and
created the Advanced Life Support Program. Brown became the City of Cleveland’s
Director of the Department of Public Safety in 1986 and instituted a plethora
of initiatives that enhanced the quality of life for residents.
Public service is ingrained in Brown, from
leading St. Vincent Charity Hospital Health Center department of Surgery
Division of Trauma as the Administrative Director to becoming Registrar for the
Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles and then the Director of the Ohio Department of
Public Safety, the former United States Air Force serviceman has diligently and
passionately protected and served citizens throughout the nation for more than
40 years.
Brown was appointed Director of the City of
Columbus Department of Public Safety in April 2000 where he oversaw the
operation of the Division of Police, Division of Fire, and Division of Support
Services.
Under his direction, Public Safety thrived. The
Division of Fire obtained accreditation status, the training academy was built,
seven fire stations were constructed and emergency medical delivery to
residents was redesigned. This effort placed a medic at each station. He
oversaw the purchase of 201 fire apparatus, obtained $34 million in homeland
security grants, implemented an emergency medical billing structure that
generated over $100 million in revenue for the city and appointed the city’s
first African-American Fire Chief.
Councilmember Brown resides on the Far East Side
with his wife Rebecca. The two have one daughter, Lindsay.