Beginning Jan. 1, 2026, Major Steven Wilhoit (left) will assume command of the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Executive Services Bureau, while Capt. Gregory Primm will succeed Wilhoit as commander of Troop A. (Photos courtesy of MSHP)

The current commanding officer of the Missouri State Highway Patrol’s Troop A is receiving a promotion and new role.

Captain Steven Wilhoit will rise to the rank of Major on Jan. 1, and accept a new role as the patrol’s commander of the Executive Services Bureau. Wilhoit became a captain in March 2021 and since then has served as the top officer in the Patrol’s Troop A.

The Shelbina native graduated from Central Missouri State University in 1991 with a degree in criminal justice. His career with the Patrol began in July 1996, where he was assigned to patrol Linn and Chariton counties. He would go on to work in the Division of Drug and Crime Control, first in Troop B out of Macon, then the state headquarters in Jefferson City.

Wilhoit’s new role as head of the Executive Services Bureau will see him in charge of the division that manages the governor’s security arrangements, the Patrol’s budgeting and procurement, and research and development. He succeeds Major Scott Shipers, who is retiring after 30 years of service to the patrol.

Meanwhile, a Macon native will succeed Wilhoit as Troop A’s Commanding Officer. Lieutenant Gregory Primm will receive a promotion to captain and assume leadership of the Lee’s Summit-based office. Primm has spent the entirety of his 24-year patrol career in Troop A, first assigned to patrol Platte and Clay counties before joining the troop’s Criminal Interdiction Team. He’s also served with the patrol’s Division of Drug and Crime Control and the Kansas City Interdiction Task Force. Primm received a degree in criminal justice from Mineral Area College in 2001 and attended the Northwestern University School of Police and Command in 2024.