Chief Corwin will retire in September and the Kansas City Police Department will need a new police chief. What kind of qualifications and qualities should the new KCPD chief have?
A steady record of skill in day to day policing. He/she should not have been too far from the streets these past years. No RMFs.
Improvement in performance of whatever division/department they have been in charge of in the recent past. No one who just "held the fort."
A history of innovation and introducing new ideas, concepts and changes in department culture.
A total dislike of criminals of all colors and no history of coddling them with political correctness.
An empty disciplinary jacket.
A thick skin, willing to listen to the whining of various groups who think they are entitled, but really aren't.
I don't see anything about color, sex, race, etc. etc. Just find the best person for the job that you can get.
I would go outside the department in my search and be very open to new blood, someone who can, after an appropriate assessment period (usually you wait at least six months to make changes in an organization if you are taking leadership from outside the company), make any needed changes. I mean if there is someone inside who is the best choice, fine, but I would not close off the idea of an outsider.
The very best person available. I don't care if they are purple with pink dots.
5 comments:
I'd also like a Police Chief that is going to put a clamp down on the revenue generating side of policing and actually pursue property/victim crimes. One that won't try to sell our city out to the corporations with their militarized toys which will beef up the police state.
Dear South Kansas City Observer: I, too, want the best man or woman for the job. There has been an explosion of violence in the black neighborhoods of KCMO since the spring of 2008--we need someone who can stop this explosion. Their race or gender is irrelevant--what is relevant is can they do the job. Take care. Sincerely and Respectfully, Ernest Evans
T.O.:
Both you and your commenters nailed it!
I could not agree with all fof you more.
I just wish we'd find someone like that for Fort Wayne!
Have a great weekend.
Stay safe out there.
There is a place for traffic stops and such in crime fighting--to enforce the driving rules, to have a presence, etc. but I do believe that sometimes it does seem as if it is just to enhance revenue.
Random violence and the perception of being unsafe is truly a quality of life issue for our city. Our new police chief must be ready to do the job without worrying who he/she might offend.
Thanks all for the comments and for coming by.
The Observer
One of the most important aspects of policing is the understanding that neighborhoods really have to police themselves and, without a relationship of trust and cutltural sensitivity between the two, policing becomes very difficult if not imossible to do effectively. There currently is no relationship at all between the KCPD and the black community, no is there any effort at community policing except on the west side.
The next chief has to be able to work closely with the police board and KCMO elected officials to develop those relationships and to provide a much more effective and safe environment, both for patrol officers and for the residents of the city.
The selection of the new chief is not just a personnel matter. It is an opportunity to turn the page on many decades on the '60s ideas of victimization and entitlement and quotos and "our turn" that have been so corrosive to the greater community for years. It is a chance for new leadership and a much more inclusive and realistic approach to issues of public policy and neighborhood improvement.
It will be the first real test for the new mayor.
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