[Police Chief Candidate Review Meeting on October 23, 2023.]
[00:00:07]
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, GOOD AFTERNOON AND WELCOME TO THE POLICE CHIEF REVIEW COMMITTEE MEETING ON THIS MONDAY, OCTOBER 23RD, 2023.
I'D LIKE TO CALL THIS MEETING TO ORDER.
LESLIE, DO WE HAVE A QUORUM AT THIS TIME? I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ADOPT A MINUTES.
IS THERE A MOTION TO ADOPT? A MINUTES? SO MOVED.
SO MOVED BY MS. VICTORIA AND SECONDED BY MS. MR. MCCLANAHAN, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, THE WAY THE PROCESS IS GONNA WORK.
WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW FIVE CANDIDATES TODAY, T BALLARD, M DANIELS, S DOUGLAS, K HINES, AND M MANNING.
WE'RE GONNA TAKE EACH CANDIDATE, UH, IN THE ORDER, IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER.
UH, EACH ONE OF US ON THE COMMITTEE IS GOING TO ASK, UH, ONE, EXCUSE ME, UP TO TWO QUESTIONS FROM THE 10 CATEGORIES THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED.
PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP, THE ROLE OF POLICE, STAFFING, BUDGETING, AND EQUIPMENT, STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES, COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, LEADERSHIP, CULTURE AND ACCOUNTABILITY, EXTERNAL ACCOUNTABILITY, DATA TECHNOLOGY AND TRANSPARENCY, RECRUITMENT, RETENTION AND PERSONNEL SUPPORT, AND THEN OFFICE OF WELLNESS AND WELLBEING.
AS YOU GET READY TO RESPOND TO EACH QUESTION, I MEAN, ASK YOU A QUESTION, PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU STATE WHAT CATEGORY IT IS COMING FROM.
WE'RE GONNA START TO MY RIGHT WITH MR. BRINA, AND THEN COME ALL THE WAY AROUND.
AND THEN AFTER EACH ONE OF US HAVE ASKED A QUESTION, WE'LL START OVER WITH MR. BRINA.
IF YOU S CHOOSE TO, YOU CAN ASK UP TO TWO.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO ASK TWO, BUT YOU CAN ASK UP TO TWO.
WE'D LIKE TO ASK AT LEAST ONE QUESTION FROM EACH CATEGORY.
SO AGAIN, STATE THE CATEGORY YOU'RE ASKING YOUR QUESTION FROM WHEN IT'S YOUR TURN TO ASK.
I'M GONNA ASK THE LAST QUESTION BEFORE WE GO BACK TO MR. BRINA FOR, TO START OVER.
EACH CANDIDATE WILL GET THREE MINUTES TO, TO MAKE AN OPEN STATEMENT.
WE'LL GO THROUGH THE ROUND OF QUESTIONS, AND THEN EACH CANDIDATE WILL GET THREE MINUTES, EXCUSE ME, TWO MINUTES TO MAKE A CLOSING STATEMENT.
IS EVERYBODY WITH ME? ALL RIGHT.
WE'RE GONNA TAKE THE FIRST CANDIDATE, UH, T BALLARD, T BALLOT WHEN IT COMES.
OKAY, MR. BALLARD, HOW ARE YOU THIS AFTERNOON, JUST TO GIVE YOU A RUNDOWN OF HOW THE PROCESS IS GONNA WORK, UH, EACH ONE OF US IS GOING TO ASK YOU ONE QUESTION FROM A LIST OF, UH, CATEGORIES THAT WE'VE IDENTIFIED.
UH, WE CAN ASK UP TO TWO QUESTIONS.
EACH ONE OF US WILL DEFINITELY ASK ONE.
IF WE FEEL THE NEED TO ASK TWO, WE'LL DO THAT AGAIN.
YOU'LL HAVE THREE MINUTES, UH, TO MAKE AN OPENING STATEMENT.
WE'RE GONNA ASK A ROUND OF QUESTIONS, AND THEN YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO MAKE A CLOSING STATEMENT.
ALL RIGHT? AND THEN AFTER THAT, UH, IF THERE ARE ANY COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC, UH, WE'RE GONNA ALLOW THEM TO, TO COME UP AND MAKE ANY COMMENTS.
UH, IF THEY MAKE A COMMENT DIRECTLY GERMANE TO ANYTHING YOU SAID OR STATED AND YOU WANT TO COME BACK, WE'LL GIVE YOU TWO MINUTES TO COME BACK AND, AND REBUT ANYTHING OR RESPOND TO ANYTHING ANYONE HAS SAID.
SO WITH THAT BEING STATED, UH, AS EACH COMMITTEE MEMBER ASK A QUESTION, THEY'RE GONNA TELL YOU WHICH CATEGORY IT COMES FROM.
AND WE'RE GONNA START WITH MR. BRINA.
OH, I THOUGHT HE WAS GIVING AN OPENING, OPENING STATEMENT.
PRESS THAT GREEN BUTTON AT THE BOTTOM OF THE MIC RIGHT THERE.
CAN Y'ALL HEAR ME BETTER? YEAH.
I'M A LIEUTENANT WITH THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I CURRENTLY SERVE AS THE COMMANDER OF THE HOMICIDE DIVISION.
I'VE BEEN THE HOMICIDE DIVISION FOR ABOUT 16 YEARS.
BEFORE THAT, I WAS IN UNIFORM PATROL AT PLANK ROAD.
UH, FIRST DISTRICT IS WHEN I GOT ASSIGNED PRETTY MUCH RIGHT OUTTA THE ACADEMY.
AFTER A LITTLE TRAINING IN AND AROUND THE LSU AREA.
I'M A GRADUATE OF SCOTLANDVILLE MAGNET HIGH SCHOOL, THEN WENT TO LSU.
DURING LSUI STARTED AS A RESERVE FOR THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
THAT'S KIND OF WHERE I KIND OF DEVELOPED MY PASSION FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT.
ONCE I, ONCE I GRADUATED FROM LSU, I CAME TO THE BATON ROUGE POLICE TRAINING ACADEMY, WENT THROUGH THE ACADEMY, AND THEN GOT ASSIGNED.
UM, IT'S REALLY BEEN MY PLEASURE TO WORK HERE.
IT, I'VE GOT LIFELONG FRIENDS THAT WORK FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I HAVE, I MEAN, IT'S PROVIDED FOR MY FAMILY.
IT'S PROVIDED FOR ME IN THE LAST 23, 24 YEARS OF ME WORKING HERE.
AND I JUST THINK THAT SOME OF MY, THE THINGS THAT I'VE BEEN ABLE TO LEARN WHILE IN THE HOMICIDE DIVISION, WHICH WAS, UH, JUST, JUST INTERACTING WITH FOLKS AND, AND COMMUNICATING WITH PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE WAS SOMETHING THAT I REALLY ENJOYED ABOUT BEING IN HOMICIDE AND AS A POLICE OFFICER IN GENERAL.
SO, OTHER THAN THAT, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO START TAKING ANY QUESTIONS.
[00:05:01]
LETTING ME COME AND SPEAK WITH YOU TODAY.THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. BALLARD.
NOW, MR. BALLARD, I SAW IN YOUR RESUME THAT YOU HAVE CRITICAL INCIDENT AND STRESS MANAGEMENT, WHICH, UH, RELATES AT LEAST HOW IT SEEMS TO CATEGORY 10, WHICH IS OFFICER WELLNESS AND WELLBEING.
AND I THOUGHT I'D START OUT BY ASKING YOU THIS, 'CAUSE I HAVE FAMILY IN LAW ENFORCEMENT AND I KNOW THAT THE EMOTIONAL WEIGHT CAN BE A LOT AND THAT IT CAN AFFECT PERSONAL LIFE OUTSIDE AND ALSO PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY.
SO THE QUESTION IS, HOW WILL YOU ADDRESS THE MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES THAT OFFICERS MAY FACE AND ENSURE THEIR HOLISTIC WELLBEING, PARTICULARLY AFTER DISTRESSING INCIDENTS? I MEAN, THAT'S A HARD QUESTION.
UH, A LOT OF TIMES AFTER SERIOUSLY STRESSFUL INCIDENCES, I KNOW THE CURRENT, WHAT WE NORMALLY DO OR WE'VE BEEN DOING RECENTLY IS PUTTING PEOPLE ON ADMIN LEAVE.
I THINK IT'S, IT'S, THAT'S GOOD TO LET AN OFFICER DECOMPRESS.
I THINK THAT YOU ALSO CAN, UH, WE, I WORKED WITH THAT CRITICAL STRESS THAT'S WITH THE PEER SUPPORT TEAM.
I THINK THAT WE HAVE A NICE LITTLE GROUP OF FOLKS THAT WE CAN KEEP UP ON EACH OTHER.
I THINK A LOT OF TIMES WHEN PEOPLE GET PUT ON ADMIN LEAVE, SOMETIMES THEY, THEY HAVE SOME QUESTIONS AND STUFF LIKE THAT.
I THINK THAT WE NEED TO DO A BETTER JOB OF ACTUALLY REACHING OUT TO THEM, LETTING THEM KNOW THE PROCESSES AND, AND PART OF OUR CRITICAL STRESS, UH, TEAM THAT WE DID, LIKE I WILL, WE'VE DONE SOME DEBRIEFS WITH OTHER AGENCIES AND THAT WAS, THEY'D SEEN THINGS THAT DISTURBED THEM AND WE WERE ABLE TO ALMOST HAVE LIKE A SMALL SETTING.
WE CAN KIND OF JUST TALK ABOUT NO, NO RANK, NO, NO, JUST COPS TALKING TO OTHER COPS ABOUT STUFF THAT THEY HAD SEEN.
AND, AND JUST KEEPING AN OPEN DIALOGUE, WHICH IS, I MEAN, PRETTY MUCH KEEPING AN OPEN DIALOGUE IS THE SECRET TO ALL OF THIS.
AND JUST FOR THE RECORD, YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES TAG.
AND I TOTALLY AGREE WITH THAT.
OPEN DIALOGUE IS DEFINITELY KEY.
I'M COMING FROM THE CATEGORY OF STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES.
WHAT DO YOU FEEL IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PILLAR OF 21ST CENTURY POLICING FOR OUR AGENCY AND WHY? WITHOUT A DOUBT, COMMUNITY POLICING.
UM, AND THAT AGAIN, GOES WITH THE OPEN DIALOGUE.
I DO A LOT OF THE COMMUNITY WALKS.
I GET A LOT OF INFORMATION IN HOMICIDE.
WE'LL JUST GO OUT TO CERTAIN AREAS AND JUST TALK TO FOLKS.
YOU MIGHT NOT GET ANYTHING THAT DAY, BUT JUST WHEN, WHEN CITIZENS AND POLICE OFFICERS CAN TALK, JUST PUT ASIDE ALL THE FORMALITIES AND WE CAN JUST HAVE A CONVERSATION.
I THINK YOU CAN GET A LOT OF STUFF DONE.
I THINK THAT, I MEAN, WE HAVE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES AND EVERYTHING, BUT JUST TALK TO ANOTHER PERSON LIKE THEY'RE ANOTHER PERSON.
I MEAN, YOU DON'T KNOW WHERE THEY COME FROM IN LIFE.
THEY DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU'VE COME, THE THINGS YOU'VE SEEN.
I THINK THAT COMMUNITY POLICING IS BY FAR THE, THE THE MOST IMPORTANT.
UH, GOOD AFTERNOON, UH, BALLOT.
UH, MY, UH, QUESTIONS COME TO YOU FROM PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP.
WHAT'S THE, WHAT DOES THE FIRST ONE 100 DAYS LOOK LIKE? RANK THE TOP FIVE PRIORITIES AND YOUR PROCESS FOR ACCOMPLISHING THEM? FIRST A HUNDRED DAYS ARE DEFINITELY, I'M GONNA TAKE AT LEAST 30, IF NOT A LITTLE BIT MORE TO SIT BACK AND KIND OF SEE WHAT THE PROCESSES ARE NOW.
UH, I KNOW I'M KIND OF WELL FAMILIAR WITH MY LITTLE SHORT AREA OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I NEED TO KIND OF BRUSH UP ON THE BIGGER THE, THE MORE THE, THE UNIT AS A WHOLE.
UM, I THINK THAT ONE OF MY MAIN THINGS WITHIN THE FIRST A HUNDRED DAYS WOULD BE I WANT TO MEET WITH A LOT OF THE OFFICERS AND ROLL CALLS AND CHECK MORALE.
UM, I KNOW THAT THAT'S ALWAYS A QUESTION WHEN YOU HAVE A CHANGE IN LEADERSHIP.
AND THAT'S, I THINK THAT THE MORALE OF THE UNIFORM GUYS IS GOING TO TRICKLE DOWN TO THEM BEING BETTER POLICE OFFICERS AND BEING ABLE TO INTERACT WITH THE CITIZENS A LOT BETTER.
UM, MINE IS GOING TO COME FROM, UM, EXTERNAL ACCOUNTABILITY.
UM, THE MAYOR HAS COMMITTED TO, UH, POLICE REFORM, UH, AND COMPLAINTS AND CONCERNS, UH, FROM THE COMMUNITY NEED TO BE HEARD.
UM, THE CREATION OF A CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT AGENCY, UM, WOULD HELP THE POLICE AND THE COMMUNITY RELATE.
AND I'M CURIOUS WHAT, UM, WHAT YOUR THOUGHTS ARE ON INTERACTING WITH SOME, SOME FORM OF CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT.
I, I WOULD HAVE TO KNOW WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.
UM, I AM MORE OF A, I WOULD SAY PRAGMATIC PERSON.
I WANNA BE ON THE GROUND DOING THINGS MYSELF, SEEING THE PROCESSES.
I THINK THAT POLICE REFORM THE MAIN THING WHEN JUST KIND OF LOOKING AT A LOT OF THIS STUFF THAT, UH, WE
[00:10:01]
DEAL WITH TODAY.I THINK THE MAIN THING IN POLICE REFORM IS ACCOUNTABILITY.
UM, WE ARE ACCOUNTABLE TO THE CITIZENS OF CITY, BUT WE'RE ALSO ACCOUNTABLE TO THE OFFICERS TO GIVE THEM A FAIR SHOT IN ANY TYPE OF SITUATION WHERE YOU MAY HAVE SOMETHING TO WHERE IT IS AN OFFICER VERSUS THERE MAY BE SOME TYPE OF INTERACTION THAT'S, THAT DIDN'T GO SO WELL BETWEEN THE CITIZENS AND THE POLICE.
UM, I THINK THAT ALSO REFORM IS A CONTINUING PROCESS.
WE NEED TO ALWAYS TRY, TRY TO DO BETTER AND SHORTENING, SHORTENING OR LIMITING THESE IMPERFECTIONS WITHIN OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND IF WE CAN CONTINUE TO DO THAT.
AGAIN, I, I'M, I SOUND LIKE A BROKEN RECORD WITH DIALOGUE, BUT I'M, I'M A BIG THAT I'M A PEOPLE PERSON.
I LIKE, I LIKE INTERACTING WITH FOLK.
AND I THINK FOR OVER, I WANNA SAY OVERSIGHT, THINGS LIKE THAT.
I THINK I WOULD GO TO A LOT OF COMMUNITY MEETINGS.
THAT IS SOMETHING THAT I ENJOY.
I LIKE MEETING THE COMMUNITY THAT WAY.
ALRIGHT, THANK YOU PASTOR GIBSON.
UH, HOW DO YOU PLAN TO ADDRESS POTENTIALLY DISCRIMINATORY STOPS AND ARRESTS? AND THIS IS FROM THE SECTION ON STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES.
IF WE'RE MAKING ANY TYPE OF DISCRIMINATING STOPS, THEN THAT, THAT'S AGAINST POLICY.
WE DO NOT, UH, WE DON'T POLICE OFF OF BIASES OR WE POLICE OFF OF PROBABLE CAUSE.
SO IF THERE'S ANYONE STOPPING ANY ONE OF ANY RACE, COLOR, CREED, THAT'S AGAINST POLICY FOR BATON ROUGE POLICE.
MR. GRAVES, I'M GONNA DRAW FROM THE LEADERSHIP CULTURE AND ACCOUNTABILITY CATEGORY.
AND, UM, MY QUESTION IS, WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE IN WORKING WITH THE POLICE UNION AND DO YOU SEE AVENUES FOR IMPROVING RELATIONS, UH, WITHOUT COMPROMISING ACCOUNTABILITY? AND WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THAT AREA? I, I'M A MEMBER OF THE POLICE UNION.
I, I KNOW MOST OF THE MEMBERS INDIVIDUALLY.
I, I WILL TELL YOU THAT I DON'T ATTEND MEETINGS REGULARLY EVERY NOW AND THEN.
IF, IF SOMEONE SAYS SOMETHING ABOUT A POLICE PAY RAISE OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT, I MIGHT ATTEND, UH, THOSE TYPE OF MEETINGS.
BUT I DON'T REGULARLY ATTEND UNION MEETINGS.
BUT I DO KNOW THAT I HAVE A GOOD RELATIONSHIP INDIVIDUALLY WITH THE MEMBERS OF THAT UNION.
I THINK THAT MY RELATIONSHIPS WITH THOSE GUYS COULD, COULD HELP IN DEALING WITH THE UNION AS A WHOLE.
MR. COLLINS, HOW YOU DOING, MR. BARRETT? SO MY FIRST QUESTION'S GONNA COME FROM STANDARD AND STRATEGIES.
UM, CAN YOU SHARE YOUR INSIGHTS ON THE BROKEN WINDOWS APPROACH AND STOP AND FRISK TACTICS? WELL, I, I THINK GOES BACK TO THAT QUESTION THAT WE JUST HAD.
UM, WE BASE THINGS OFF OF PROBABLE CAUSE.
I THINK THAT ALONG WITH COMMUNITY POLICING, I, WHEN I WAS A PATROLMAN, I REALLY ENJOYED MEETING THE PEOPLE, WHETHER IT WAS THE GUYS THAT I KNOW WERE GONNA BE OVER HERE DOING STUFF THAT WE DON'T WANT 'EM TO DO.
OR MEETING LITTLE, THE TWO LITTLE OLD LADIES THAT LIVE IN A HOUSE TOGETHER 'CAUSE THEIR HUSBAND'S PASSED AWAY ON SHERWOOD STREET.
I THINK THAT THERE IS MERIT TO ACTIVE PATROLS.
I THINK THAT WE SHOULD DO PROACTIVE PATROLS AS POLICE OFFICERS.
ONE OF THE MAIN THINGS THAT I TALK TO WHEN I TALK TO PEOPLE IN CERTAIN AREAS WHEN WE DO THESE WALKS, THEY WANT TO KNOW, THEY WANT TO BE SEEN.
THEY'RE LIKE, I HAVEN'T SEEN YOU COME DOWN MY STREET IN TWO WEEKS.
UM, A LOT OF THESE PLACES, I THINK JUST THE MERE PRESENCE OF A UNIFORMED POLICE OFFICER IN A MARKED POLICE CAR AND GOING OUT AND MAYBE NOT SO MUCH MAKING A TRAFFIC STOP.
IT AIN'T STOPPING AND TALKING TO SOMEBODY LIKE A, A LOT OF THAT, AGAIN, OPEN DIALOGUE IS GONNA HELP US.
AND WHEN YOU GET TO KNOW THE PEOPLE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, THEY'RE GONNA TELL YOU WHAT'S WRONG AND THEY CAN HELP YOU FIX IT.
AND MY SECOND QUESTION COMES FROM COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
UH, I'M SORRY, I'M GONNA COME BACK AROUND TO YOU.
FOR THE SECOND QUESTION, IS IT A SERPENTINE LIKE IT LIKE WHEN YOU'RE DRAFTING, OR DO I HAVE TO MAKE ANOTHER LOOP AGAIN?
OH, CAN YOU HEAR ME? CAN YOU HEAR ME? OKAY.
MY QUESTION IS COMING FROM THE PERSONAL APPROACH, UM, IN LEADERSHIP CATEGORY.
THIS POSITION IS ACEO OF A MULTIMILLION DOLLAR ORGANIZATION, WHICH OVERSEES HUNDREDS OF STAFF AND MILLIONS OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS AND MANAGES THOUSANDS OF PHYSICAL RESOURCES.
WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND? UM, WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QU QUALIFIED TO SERVE AT THIS LEVEL? PLEASE PROVIDE SPECIFIC DETAILS.
I HAVE, I'M TRY, I'M GONNA TRY TO TRANSLATE WHAT I'VE BEEN DOING IN HOMICIDE, WHICH I'VE JUST RECENTLY, WITHIN THE LAST YEAR TOOK OVER AS THE LU THE COMMANDER.
[00:15:01]
THAT AS ACEO, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO TRUST THE TALENT THAT YOU HAVE ON THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.AND I KNOW THAT IN SPEAKING WITH FOLKS THAT WE ARE, THERE IS A LOT OF TALENTED PEOPLE WITH VERY SPECIFIC FIELDS OF, UH, EXPERTISE THAT ARE INSIDE THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I'M GONNA HAVE TO DO ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT'S HARD FOR ME, WHICH IS TO DELEGATE, BUT I WILL SURROUND MYSELF WITH FOLKS THAT HAVE THE PROPER BACKGROUND IN ASSET MANAGEMENT AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
LIKE, I'M PRETTY MUCH JUST IN CHARGE OF A, UH, A FEW POLICE CARS THAT IF WE CAN KEEP 'EM ON THE ROAD, UH, THAT WOULD BE GREAT.
BUT IT, I KNOW THAT THAT COULD BE CONSIDERABLY, UH, MORE LABOR INTENSIVE ONCE, UH, YOU'RE LOOKING AT A WHOLE FLEET.
MR. BALLARD, MY CHIEF COMES FROM THE ROLE OF POLICE.
WHAT ARE THE THREE PRIMARY OR MOST IMPORTANT ROLES OF A CHIEF OF POLICE, PARTICULARLY IN THE JURISDICTION LIKE THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE? I THINK THAT THE POLICE CHIEF NEEDS TO BE, OR, OR FOR THE CHIEF, OR JUST POLICE IN GENERAL, FOR THE CHIEF OF POLICE.
I THINK THREE MOST IMPORTANT ASPECTS OF THE JOB FOR THE CHIEF OF POLICE, WE ARE, UH, TO, TO LEAD BY EXAMPLE.
YOU, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO BE, YOU'RE THE PERSON, YOU'RE THE FACE OF THE DEPARTMENT A LOT OF TIMES, EXCEPT FOR GINO, WHO'S A LOT BETTER LOOKING.
UM, I WOULD SAY THAT LEADERSHIP, AND, AND ALSO, AGAIN, I TOUCHED ON IT BEFORE, ACCOUNTABILITY.
PEOPLE ARE, PEOPLE EXPECT YOU TO DO WHAT YOU PROMISED PEOPLE EXPECT AND DESERVE, THAT YOU TAKE OVER AND, AND COMPLETE YOUR OBJECTIVES.
THAT WHAT WHATEVER IT HAS BEEN.
SO I THINK THAT LEADERSHIP, UM, AND HONESTLY, YOU NEED TO BE A CHEERLEADER.
I WE NEED TO BE A CHAMPION FOR SOME OF THESE OFFICERS.
UH, THERE ARE A LOT OF THINGS THAT WE DO AS POLICE OFFICERS THAT GO UNSUNG.
AND I CAN TELL YOU, UH, WITH EITHER MENTORING YOUNG KIDS, BEING THE COACHES, OUTREACH AND, AND, AND TAKING CARE OF FOLKS IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, I THINK THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT WE, THAT WE DO THAT WE DON'T GET CREDIT FOR.
THAT IF THE PUBLIC WERE TO SEE THAT THEY WOULD UNDERSTAND, UH, MORE OF WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO DO, WHICH IS JUST HAVE A BETTER RELATIONSHIP WITH THE COMMUNITY AND THE PEOPLE WE SERVE.
MR. BRINER, AGAIN, MR. BALLARD, UH, THIS COMES FROM CATEGORY ONE, PERSONAL APPROACH IN LEADERSHIP AND CONSIDERING YOUR EMPHASIS ON KIND OF TAKING INTO ACCOUNT THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY AND ALSO THE OFFICERS THEMSELVES.
A QUESTION THAT MAY BE KIND OF DIFFICULT TO ANSWER, BUT THE BEST YOU CAN IS WHAT WILL YOU DO TO ENSURE THAT ALL OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, STAKEHOLDERS, OFFICERS, THE COMMUNITY, THE POLICE UNION, POLITICAL ACTORS, WHOEVER MIGHT BE, HAVE FAITH IN AND UNDERSTAND THE JUSTIFICATION FOR THE DECISIONS YOU MAKE AS CHIEF OF POLICE? HONEST DIALOGUE, WE'RE NOT GONNA SIT HERE AND PUSH SOMETHING DOWN THE ROAD.
IF IT'S SOMETHING THAT I CAN'T DISCUSS AT THIS SPECIFIC MOMENT, I WILL TELL YOU, HEY, LOOK, THAT THIS IS SOMETHING THAT I CAN'T DISCUSS RIGHT NOW, BUT WE WILL VISIT THIS ANOTHER TIME.
WE DO A LOT OF THAT IN HOMICIDE.
UH, THERE ARE, WE HAVE ACTIVE CASES AND WE HAVE TO TELL PEOPLE A LOT OF TIMES THAT WE CAN'T TELL THEM EVERYTHING, BUT WE'RE GONNA TELL THEM ENOUGH.
I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT WE'RE, WE ARE WORKING TOWARDS THAT WITH EVERYONE.
IT'S JUST SOMETIMES WE CANNOT, WE CAN'T, WE CAN'T DISCUSS EVERYTHING.
BUT OPEN, OPEN AND HONEST DIALOGUE, OPEN AND HONEST.
I MEAN, I CAN'T STRESS IT ENOUGH.
I MEAN, ALL WE, I DON'T THINK THAT THERE'S A SINGLE PROBLEM THAT WE HAVE IN THIS CITY THAT WE CAN'T FIX BY SITTING DOWN AND HAVING A CUP OF COFFEE AND TALKING ABOUT IT.
I HONESTLY DON'T, I, I I WORK WITH PEOPLE FROM ALL WALKS OF LIFE AND I MEAN, EVERYBODY CAN FIND A COMMON GROUND SOMEWHERE.
MS. VICTORIA, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
WHAT WOULD BE YOUR, THIS IS COMING FROM THE PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP.
WHAT WOULD BE YOUR LEGACY WHEN YOU RETIRE? I THINK MY LEGACY WOULD BE THE, THE CITIZENS OF THIS CITY.
UH, UNDERSTANDING THE THINGS THAT WE DO AND THAT, THAT THEY ARE, FOR THE MOST PART, PLEASED BY THE JOB THAT WE DO.
AND THAT THE OFFICERS ARE WELL AS WELL, ARE, HAVE A GOOD MENTAL STATE AND, AND CAN DO THEIR 30 YEARS AND LEAVE HERE NOT FEELING LIKE IT WAS A BURDEN.
I STILL ENJOY COMING TO WORK EVERY DAY.
I THINK IT IS A VICTORY WHEN PEOPLE START RETIRING AND THEY'RE LIKE, MAN, I JUST, IT WENT BY LIKE THIS.
I THINK THAT AS LONG AS THE CITIZENS FOR ARE MOSTLY HAPPY WITH WHAT WE'RE DOING AND OUR OFFICERS ARE HAPPY, THAT'S A WIN.
EVERYTHING ELSE CAN FALL BY THE WAYSIDE.
UH, OFFICER, UH, BALL, UH, I KNOW YOU TOUCHED ON, UH, YOU'RE, YOU'RE A MEMBER OF THE POLICE UNION
[00:20:01]
AND WHAT HAVE YOU.BATON ROUGE HAS TWO POLICE UNIONS, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN.
AND DO YOU SUPPORT HAVING TWO LAW ENFORCEMENT UNIONS REPRESENTING THE MEMBERS OF THE BAT BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT? YEAH.
WELL, I'M FRIENDS WITH PEOPLE ON BOTH SIDES.
UH, BOTH, BOTH PARTIES THAT ARE INVOLVED IN BATON ROUGE.
UM, I WORK IN VIOLENT CRIMES UNIT.
IT'S, THERE'S A HANDFUL OF US.
SOME OF US ARE IN JUST ONE OR TWO.
BUT AGAIN, THAT'S NOT AN ISSUE.
IT, IT'S, IT'S NOT A BIG DEAL.
MS. CORWELL, MY MY, PARDON ME.
MY SECOND QUESTION'S COMING FROM CATEGORY THREE, STAFFING, BUDGETING, BUDGETING AND EQUIPMENT.
UM, WHAT STRATEGIES WILL YOU USE TO DETERMINE AND FULFILL STAFFING NEEDS? I KNOW IN, IN THE PAST WE HAVE HAD, UM, SOME BUDGET, SOME BUDGET, UH, ISSUES WERE DEALT WITH THROUGH, YOU KNOW, EFFICIENCY.
UH, THAT MAY MEAN WE HAVE ENOUGH PEOPLE, WE DON'T HAVE ENOUGH PEOPLE, WHATEVER.
HOW WILL YOU DETERMINE OUR NEEDS AND, AND GET THOSE FULFILLED? I THINK THAT, UH, WHEN YOU CAN DETERMINE THE NEEDS BY WHAT SERVICES ARE WE PROVIDING? ARE WE, ARE WE HAVING TO HOLD CALLS FOR SEVERAL WAY TOO LONG? UM, BUT HONESTLY, A LOT OF THE ST UM, I WOULD SAY RECRUITING.
UH, WE'RE, WE'RE DOWN A HUNDRED PLUS OFFICERS.
I THINK OUR BEST TOOL, UH, AS POLICE OFFICERS IS THE POLICE OFFICERS THEMSELVES.
IF YOU CAN WALK AROUND AND TALK TO FOLKS, IF YOU CAN WALK AROUND AND SHOW THE BENEFITS AND, AND THE ADVANTAGES OF COMING TO WORK FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UH, I MEAN, YOU'RE ALWAYS GONNA WANT TO USE SOCIAL MEDIA AND ALL THE NEWER THINGS THAT FOLKS DO TODAY.
I DON'T, I DON'T, I JUST GOT ON INSTAGRAM.
UH, I JUST POST PICTURES OF MY DOGS.
BUT I REALLY THINK THAT, THAT WE ARE OUR OWN BEST RESOURCE TO DRAW MORE CANDIDATES HERE BECAUSE IF YOU CAN HAVE SOMEBODY THAT WHEN YOU'RE, YOU BUMP INTO 'EM AT THE GROCERY STORE AND THEY TALK ABOUT HOW MUCH OF A, THAT THEY'LL ENJOY WORKING FOR THE POLICE DEPARTMENT THAT SAYS VOLUMES.
PASTOR GIBSON, UH, FROM PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP, UH, IN YOUR OPINION, WHAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT CRITERIA NEEDED IN THE NEW CHIEF OF POLICE TO BE AN EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATOR? I MEAN, IT'S ONE THING I THINK TO SIT, TO SIT HERE IN FRONT OF Y'ALL.
THIS IS KIND OF, I GUESS THIS IS COMFORTABLE FOR ME.
I'M USED TO SITTING IN GRAND JURIES, BUT I THINK A LOT OF THE INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATION SKILLS WE'RE LACKING THESE DAYS.
'CAUSE PEOPLE ARE STUCK IN THEIR CELL PHONES.
I THINK THAT JUST TO COME UP AND, AND TO BE A GOOD COMMUNICATOR AND TO EXPLAIN THE PROCESSES THAT WE HAVE TO DO AND WHY IT'S HAPPENING THIS WAY.
I THINK IF YOU EXPLAIN THINGS TO MOST FOLKS, THEY UNDERSTAND IT.
BUT WE'RE GONNA HAVE TO BE ABLE TO GET OUT THERE WITH VARIOUS TOOLS AND EXPLAIN THE REASON THAT WE DO THE WHAT WE DO.
OFFICER BALLARD, THIS IS FROM STAFFING, BUDGETING AND EQUIPMENT.
UM, HOW WOULD YOU ASSESS THE, THE COORDINATION AND COOPERATION BETWEEN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, SUCH AS THE SHERIFF AND ALSO FEDERAL AGENCIES? AND CAN THOSE, UH, RELATIONS BE IMPROVED TO, UH, POLICE MORE EFFECTIVELY? ABSOLUTELY.
I MEAN, I WORK IN THE VIOLENT CRIME UNIT.
I INTERACT EVERY DAY WITH MEMBERS OF THE STATE, POLICE, FEDERAL AGENCIES, THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE.
WE, WE KIND OF CAN PASS INFORMATION ALONG.
THAT WAS WHY IT WAS CREATED IN 2011.
WE CAME TOGETHER TO SHARE IDEAS.
SOMETIMES OUR, OUR BAD GUYS OR BAD GIRLS, THEY DON'T OVERLAP, BUT SOMETIMES THEY DO.
BUT WE, WE ARE SITTING THERE, WE SEE EACH OTHER EVERY DAY.
I PASS THE GUYS AT THE SHERIFF'S OFFICE WHILE WE'RE DRINKING COFFEE AND DISCUSS THE CASES THAT THEY ARE WORKING, THE CASES THAT WE ARE, THAT WE WORK.
I THINK WE HAVE A REALLY GOOD WORKING RELATIONSHIP, I KNOW, IN THE VIOLENT CRIMES UNIT, AND I CAN'T SEE ANY REASON WHY THAT WOULDN'T BLEED OUT TO SOME OF THE OTHER, UH, LARGER DE DEPARTMENTS AS A WHOLE.
I MEAN, I'VE NEVER HAD ANY ISSUES WORKING WITH ANY OF THE REST OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENTS AND, UH, SHERIFFS AND STATE AROUND HERE.
SO I DON'T SEE THAT BEING AN ISSUE.
LIEUTENANT BALLARD, ARE YOU GOING TO UPDATE AND RELEASE A KAREN BRADY BRADY LIST? IF NOT, WHY? IF SO, WHY? I THINK THE, DID WE RELEASE IT THE LAST TIME? I THINK THAT WAS THE DA'S OFFICE THAT ACTUALLY RELEASED A BRADY LIST.
IF I'M, IF, I MEAN, I, IF THERE'S ANYONE, AND, AND BELIEVE ME, THIS
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IS IMPORTANT TO ME BECAUSE I DON'T WANT ANY PERSON TO HAVE TO TESTIFY IN ONE OF MY CASES THAT COULD HAVE THEIR, THAT COULD HAVE THEIR TESTIMONY THROWN OUT.SO IF THERE'S ANYONE EXCLUDED FROM TESTIFYING OR PUTTING ON A BRADY LIST THAT THEIR CHARACTERS IN QUESTION THAT THAT MIGHT BE A, THAT'S GONNA BE AN ISSUE.
SO WOULD YOU RELEASE IT OR NOT? I WOULD.
MS. MATTHEW, THIS, UM, QUESTION COMES FROM RECRUITMENT, RETENTION, AND PERSONNEL SUPPORT.
WHAT CAN BE DONE IN BATON ROUGE TO RECRUIT MORE QUALIFIED OFFICERS? AND HOW WOULD YOU IMPLEMENT YOUR PLAN? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? AGAIN, I, I DON'T WORK IN RECRUITING, BUT I DO KNOW SOME OF THE FOLKS THAT DO WORK IN THERE.
UH, THEY DOING AN OUTSTANDING JOB RIGHT NOW WITH TRYING TO RECRUIT NEW OFFICERS.
UNFORTUNATELY, ACROSS NATIONWIDE, RECRUITING IS AN ISSUE.
RECRUITING IS, RECRUITING IS AN ISSUE WITH MULTIPLE AGENCIES AROUND HERE.
AGAIN, I'LL GO BACK TO WHAT I WAS SAYING BEFORE.
I THINK WE'RE OUR BEST TOOL TO DO THAT.
I THINK THAT YOU CAN COME IN HERE.
I, I CAN SELL BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO A SOMEBODY WHO WANTS TO BE A POLICE OFFICER AND ANY, ANY AVENUE HE WISHES, WISH HE OR SHE WISHES TO PURSUE, WE CAN DO THAT HERE.
WE, WE CAN, IF YOU ARE INTERESTED IN INVESTIGATIONS, IF YOU'RE ARREST IN, ARRESTED IN CRIME SCENE, I THINK THAT WE UNFORTUNATELY HAVE ENOUGH BUSINESS IN BATON ROUGE TO WHERE ANY, WHATEVER YOUR NICHE OR YOU BELIEVE YOUR NICHE TO BE WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, WE CAN, WE CAN, UH, ACCOMMODATE THAT.
SO I KNOW A LOT, LIKE I, I KNOW A LOT OF FOLKS THAT WANNA COME HERE AND THEY HAVE VERY SPECIFIC THINGS THAT THEY WANNA DO.
AND I THINK THAT THAT'S A DRAW.
I THINK THAT YOU CAN, PEOPLE WATCH CSII WANNA BE ACSI PERSON.
WE CAN TEACH YOU HOW TO DO THAT.
WE, WE DO A WHOLE LOT OF, WE HAVE A, WE'RE VERY, WE'RE VERY, UH, WE'RE VERY BROAD WITH WHAT WE CAN DO AND THE DIFFERENT DIVISIONS THAT WE HAVE.
HOW, HOW DO YOU, AND THIS QUESTION COMES FROM COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
HOW DO YOU INTEND TO ENGAGE YOUTH ACROSS OUR COMMUNITY TO PRODUCE POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR OFFICERS? I THINK WE NEED TO HAVE, UH, WE HAVE A TRU GROUP NOW, BUT I THINK THAT WE NEED TO HAVE MORE OFFICERS VISITING THE SCHOOLS.
I THINK THAT THEY NEED TO SEE US AS A BENEFIT THAN THE, THE SCARY POLICE OFFICER THAT COMES AND GETS.
I THINK THAT EVERY POLICE INTERACTION DOESN'T HAVE TO BE SOMEONE WAS IN TROUBLE.
I GREW UP IN, UH, BAKER, LOUISIANA.
ALL OF MY BALL COACHES WERE ALL POLICE OFFICERS.
IF I SAW A POLICE OFFICER, I'D WANNA COME AND, AND TALK TO 'EM.
WE TRIED TO HARBOR THAT AND TRIED TO FOSTER THAT.
UH, KIND OF SAME THING WHEN I WAS IN PATROL.
I'D GO AND TALK TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD KIDS, BUT A A LOT OF TIMES I THINK THAT STEP OUT AND TALK TO A YOUNG MAN, A YOUNG PERSON, LIKE THEY NEED TO KNOW THAT WE'RE NOT, I DON'T, I DON'T THAT THE WORST THING THAT I, I HATE TO SEE IS A POLICE OFFICER AS YOU'RE WALKING THROUGH A GROCERY STORE AND THEY'RE LIKE, THERE'S THE POLICE.
IF YOU, IF YOU ACT UP, I'M GONNA GET YOU.
I'M GONNA TELL 'EM TO GET YOU THAT.
I SAID, AND I SAID, I STOP PEOPLE.
AND I SAY, DON'T TELL SOMEBODY THAT.
I SAID, YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO COME TO ME.
IF YOU'RE LOST AND YOU CAN'T FIND YOUR MOM AND DAD IN THE STORE, YOU NEED TO BE ABLE TO COME TO A POLICE OFFICER.
AND I THINK THAT IF WE CAN, YOU KNOW, KIND OF BROADEN THAT A LITTLE BIT, THEY KIDS SHOULD BE ABLE TO COME TO US.
I KNOW THAT THEY'RE GOING THROUGH A LOT WITH SOCIAL MEDIA AND THE VIOLENCE THAT IS, UH, PLAGUED NOT ONLY THIS CITY, BUT ACROSS THE NATION.
AND THEY NEED BE ABLE TO KNOW THAT THEY CAN COME TO US FOR PROTECTION.
YOU NOW HAVE TWO MINUTES TO MAKE CLOSING REMARKS.
UM, I WOULD SAY THAT I DID, IN, IN PREPARING FOR THIS TODAY THAT I LOOKED UP THE MISSION STATEMENT FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE.
AND OF ALL OF THIS BOOK, IT'S ABOUT ONE SENTENCE, AND IT IS TO SERVE WITH THE BATON ROUGE COMMUNITY TO PREVENT CRIME AND TO PROMOTE SAFETY AND WELLBEING FOR ALL WE GO, WE GO THROUGH ALL OF THIS TO, I MEAN, WE CAN REALLY BOIL IT DOWN TO THIS ONE SENTENCE.
I'VE DEDICATED MY CAREER TO FIGHTING VIOLENT CRIME.
I THINK THAT WE NEED TO BE PROMOTING SAFETY FOR ALL.
THERE'S NOT A SINGLE CHILD THAT, THAT DOESN'T DESERVE TO GO PLAY BALL IN THIS FRONT YARD AND HAVE TO WORRY ABOUT ANY VIOLENT CRIME THAT HAPPENED IN THIS CITY.
AND I HAVE, I HAVE PRETTY MUCH TRIED DURING MY CAREER TO TAKE MY LITTLE PIECE OUT OF IT.
I THINK THAT, UM, A LOT OF TIMES WE, WE CAN CONFUSE THINGS WITH THESE BIG, SWEEPING CHANGES.
AND MY DAD TOLD ME AT ONE WHEN I WAS A LOT YOUNGER THAN I AM NOW, THAT YOU CAN BUILD YOUR LIFE ON THE SIMPLE PRINCIPLES.
I THINK THAT YOU, IF YOU CAN DO THAT, THE SIMPLE THINGS IN LIFE, IF YOU CAN BUILD OFF OF THOSE THINGS, THEN THAT WILL
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HELP IN THE LONG RUN.I DON'T THINK THAT, UH, I THINK THAT WE HAVE A, A BUNCH OF GOOD MEN AND WOMEN WITH THIS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I SAW, I SAW IT THIS WEEKEND WHEN THEY RAB WHEN THEY SURROUNDED THE OFFICERS THAT WERE INVOLVED IN THE TRAFFIC CRASH.
I KNOW WE HAVE GOOD MEN AND WOMEN WITH GOOD HEARTS ON THIS DEPARTMENT, AND IF THEY CAN JUST KIND OF SHOW THAT TO EVERYBODY ELSE, THEN THAT, THAT WOULD SPEAK FOR ITSELF.
I THINK THAT I COULD BE THE ONE TO LEAD THESE MEN AND WOMEN ONLY BECAUSE I HAVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH THEM.
I, I'M NOT AFRAID, UH, I HAVE THICK SKIN.
I'VE HAD TO WALK INTO THESE PLACES IN THE PAST AND TELL FOLKS THE WORST NEWS THAT THEY'RE EVER GONNA HEAR IN THEIR ENTIRE LIFE.
SO, A LITTLE IF, IF, IF I CAN GO AND WALK INTO THESE FAMILIES AND TELL 'EM THAT THEIR LOVED ONE IS, IS NOT COMING BACK.
I, I DON'T THINK THAT, UH, A LITTLE BACKTALK FROM OTHER FOLKS AROUND THE CITY IS GONNA RUIN, UH, WHAT I GOT TO DO.
I WOULD JUST WANT TO PUT THIS CITY FIRST, PUT THESE OFFICERS THAT I KNOW THAT THEY'RE DOING A GREAT JOB.
MR. BALL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR INTERVIEWING WITH THIS COMMITTEE TO BE THE NEXT CHIEF OF POLICE.
WE SINCERELY APPRECIATE YOU, AND THIS CONCLUDES THE INTERVIEW.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF THE COMMITTEE, JUST A REMINDER TO MAKE SURE YOU ANNOUNCE AT THE BEGINNING OF YOUR QUESTION, WHICH CATEGORY IS COMING FROM.
WE READY FOR THE NEXT CANDIDATE.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, OUR NEXT CANDIDATE IS GONNA BE M DANIELS.
I THOUGHT THREE MINUTES, TWO MINUTES, THREE MINUTES FOR OPEN AND TWO MINUTES.
TWO MINUTES FOR EACH QUESTION.
I WANNA THANK ALL THE PEOPLE IN GENERAL PUBLIC FOR COMING OUT AND BEING WITH US THIS EVENING.
WE'RE GONNA HAVE A PUBLIC PUBLIC COMMENT SESSION AT THE END OF THE INTERVIEWS, JUST SO YOU ALL ARE AWARE.
I'M THE CHAIR OF THE POLICE CHIEF INTERVIEW COMMITTEE.
I'D LIKE TO EXPLAIN TO YOU HOW THE INTERVIEW IS GOING TO WORK.
EACH ONE OF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS IS GOING TO ASK YOU A QUESTION FROM A LIST OF CATEGORIES THAT WE HAVE ALREADY IDENTIFIED.
UH, YOU'LL BE GIVEN TWO MINUTES TO ANSWER EACH QUESTION PRIOR TO ANSWERING THE QUESTIONS.
YOU'LL BE GIVEN THREE MINUTES TO MAKE AN OPENING STATEMENT.
UH, AND THEN AFTER YOU ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS, YOU'LL BE GIVEN TWO MINUTES TO MAKE A CLOSING STATEMENT.
UH, EACH COMMITTEE MEMBER CAN ASK UP TO TWO QUESTIONS, UP TO TWO, WE'LL ALL ASK ONE, BUT WE CAN'T ASK TWO.
AND WE'LL START ON TO MY IMMEDIATE RIGHT, YOUR LEFT WHERE MR. GNAT WORK OUR WAY AROUND FOR THE FIRST ROUND OF QUESTIONS.
THEN WE'LL COME BACK AND GO AROUND AGAIN OPENING.
UM, I'M JUST TELLING HIM HOW IT'S GONNA WORK.
IS THE COMMITTEE READY? YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES FOR YOUR OPENING STATEMENT, MR. DAVIS.
UH, AND AGAIN, GOOD EVENING, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN OF THE COMMITTEE, AND TO ALL OF THOSE WHO ARE IN ATTENDANCE.
UM, MY NAME IS MYRON DANIELS, AND I AM THE CURRENT CHIEF OF STAFF FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I HAVE SERVED THIS GREAT CITY FOR OVER 25 YEARS, AND I'M NOW VYING TO CONTINUE MY SERVICE TO THIS COMMUNITY.
AS YOUR CHIEF OF POLICE, I AM A PROVEN TRANSFORMATIVE LEADER THAT, UH, WITHIN THE LAST FIVE AND A HALF YEARS, I'VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF SERVING, UH, AT THE EXECUTIVE LEVEL OF ADMINISTRATION.
DURING THAT TIME, I HAVE HELPED IMPLEMENT 21ST CENTURY POLICING WITHIN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT, AND TO MOVE THE CULTURE TOWARD ACCOUNTABILITY AND INCREASED PROFESSIONALISM.
ONE OF MY PRIORITIES HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO REMAIN BUILDING, UH, AND IMPROVING TRUST WITHIN OUR COMMUNITY.
I RECOGNIZE THAT WE LIVE IN AN EVER-CHANGING SOCIETY.
AND AS LEADERS, I HAVE HAD TO CHANGE A LITTLE BIT MYSELF.
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HAS REQUIRED ME TO RE-ENVISION ASPECTS OF THIS PROFESSION.AND THAT INCLUDES RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION, THE CULTURE OF THE AGENCY, TRAINING, AND AGAIN, ACCOUNTABILITY.
BEFORE WE GET STARTED WITH QUESTIONS, I DO WANT TO CONFIRM THAT I DID VOLUNTARILY AUTHORIZE, UH, THE MAYOR'S ADVISORY COMMITTEE, UH, TO REVIEW MY PERSONNEL FILES, INTERNAL AFFAIRS, INVESTIGATION FILES, AND DISCIPLINARY ACTION.
I ALSO UNDERSTAND AND HAVE NO ISSUES DISCUSSING ANY OF THOSE MATTERS IN THIS PUBLIC FORUM.
I'VE LEARNED OVER THE YEARS THAT AS THE DEPARTMENT LEADER, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE AND WILLING TO ANSWER TOUGH QUESTIONS.
UH, IT COMES WITH THE POSITION AND WHETHER IRONICALLY OR SYMBOLICALLY, UH, THIS PARTICULAR CHAMBER IS A PLACE WHERE THAT OFTEN OCCURS.
SO, WITH THAT, I THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO BE BEFORE YOU, AND I AM WILLING TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE FOR ME.
NOW, THIS IS FROM CATEGORY 11, POSSIBLE QUESTIONS FOR CURRENT BRPD CANDIDATES.
AND SO I SEE IN YOUR RESUME THAT YOU WERE THE INTERNAL AFFAIRS COMMANDER FROM 2018 TO 2020.
AND GIVEN THAT ROLE AND THE, UH, NUMBER OF INCIDENTS THAT SEEMED TO APPEAR DURING THAT TIME, HOW DID YOU OR YOUR DIVISION RESPOND TO THE DIFFICULTIES AND SCANDALS RELATED TO OTHER DIVISIONS IN RECENT YEARS? FOR EXAMPLE, THE STREET CRIMES UNIT, THE NARCOTICS DIVISION, THE CANINE UNIT, UH, DID YOU ADOPT, SUGGEST, OR IMPLEMENT ANY NEW POLICIES AND WHAT'S BEEN THEIR RESULT? OKAY.
SO YES, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.
UH, IN 20 18TH OF MARCH, I BECAME THE INTERNAL AFFAIRS COMMANDER THROUGH APPOINTMENT BY CHIEF PAUL.
DURING THAT TIME, I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO DEAL WITH QUITE A FEW OF THE INCIDENTS, UH, THAT YOU JUST DESCRIBED.
ONE OF THE THINGS I AM HAPPIEST ABOUT DURING THAT TIME WAS WE PUT ACCOUNTABILITY MEASURES IN PLACE, AND WE WERE ABLE TO DECREASE THE NUMBER OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS COMPLAINTS, UM, THAT WE HAD TO INVESTIGATE.
WE ACTUALLY SAW A DECREASE IN THOSE, UH, COMPLAINTS AGAINST OFFICERS.
THE EVEN BETTER PART IS WE PROVIDED A WAY FOR MORE COMPLAINTS TO COME IN.
WE MADE IT EASIER TO FILE A COMPLAINT.
UM, WE CREATED THE ONLINE PROCESS OF BEING ABLE TO FILE A COMPLAINT AGAINST POLICE OFFICERS RATHER THAN JUST COME IN AND PROVIDE, UH, A STATEMENT TO A SUPERVISOR.
UM, WE ALSO, DURING THAT TIME, UH, ONE OF THE BIG CONTROVERSIES WAS THE USE OF CANINE.
UM, IT WAS ACTUALLY, UH, ONE OF MY TASKS TO, UH, VISIT THAT POLICY.
UM, I COMMUNICATED WITH THE THEN COMMANDER OF THAT DIVISION.
WE REVIEWED POLICY FROM AGENCIES OF, OF, UH, SIMILAR SIZE, AND WE CAME UP WITH SOME RECOMMENDATIONS.
THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS INCLUDED, UH, THE MANDATORY WEARING OF BODY CAMERAS DURING THOSE INCIDENTS OR ACTIVATION OF THOSE BODY CAMERAS DURING THOSE INCIDENTS.
AND AGAIN, THAT POLICY VERY SIGNIFICANT, DECREASED THE USE OF OUR CANINE DEPLOYMENTS, UH, EXPONENTIALLY.
UH, MY QUESTION WILL BE COMING FROM RECRUITMENT RETENTION AND, UH, PERSONNEL SUPPORT.
THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS, HAS BEEN IN THE NEWS AS OF LATE.
THESE NEWS STORIES HAVE CERTAINLY HAD AN IMPACT ON THE OFFICER'S MORALE WITH INTERNAL INVESTIGATIONS, EXTERNAL INVESTIGATIONS AND LAWSUITS PENDING INVOLVING OFFICER MISCONDUCT.
HOW WOULD YOU RAISE MORALE IN THE DEPARTMENT AMONG YOUR OFFICERS? UH, WELL, THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION, MS. VICTORIA.
UM, FORTUNATELY, I'M ALREADY ABLE TO ACTUALLY DO SOME OF THOSE THINGS.
UM, YES, WE HAVE BEEN IN THE NEWS RECENTLY.
UH, THERE HAVE BEEN A LOT OF QUESTIONS REGARDING, UH, ACTIONS TAKEN BY A FEW OFFICERS WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT.
UH, THE POSITIVE SIDE OF THAT IS, UH, THE DEPARTMENT WAS ABLE TO HOLD OFFICERS ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR WRONGDOING.
UH, WITH THAT, YES, IT CAUSED AN ISSUE OR A CONCERN REGARDING, UH, MORALE ON THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UH, A LOT OF THE, UH, PEOPLE WHO WERE INVOLVED IN SOME OF THESE ALLEGATIONS WERE VERY RESPECTED OFFICERS WITHIN OUR AGENCY.
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SO WHAT WE DID WAS WE WENT DOWN TO ACTUALLY SPEAK WITH ALL OUR OFFICERS FACE-TO-FACE.UH, OFTENTIMES THERE ARE SO MANY QUESTIONS THAT ARISE, BUT THE PEOPLE WHO CAN ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS AREN'T OFTEN IN THE ROOM.
AND IF THEY ARE NOT ANSWERED, THEN, UH, THERE'S HOLES IN A STORY.
AND WHAT WE FOUND IS IF THERE ARE, I GUESS YOU COULD SAY, SPACES, THEY'RE USUALLY FILLED IN AND THEY'RE FILLED IN WITH NEGATIVITY.
SO WE ACTUALLY GO OUT AND, AND WENT OUT AND SPENT TIME WITH ALL OUR OFFICERS ABLE, GIVING THEM THE, THE OPPORTUNITY TO HAVE AN OPEN DIALOGUE WITH US AND TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS THAT THEY MAY HAVE.
AND WITH THAT, JUST SHOWING THAT AGAIN, WE ARE OPEN.
WE DO NOT HIDE ANYTHING THAT WE DO.
AND AS WE ARE TRANSPARENT WITH THE PUBLIC, WE'RE ALSO TRANSPARENT WITH THE OFFICERS THAT WORK WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT.
UH, MYRON, HOW YOU DOING TODAY, BROTHER? I'M GREAT, SIR.
HOW ARE YOU, WHAT ARE THE THREE PRIMARY OR THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT ROLES OF A CHIEF OR POLICE, PARTICULARLY IN A JURISDICTION OR A CITY LIKE BATON ROUGE? UM, SO, UH, I WILL START OFF BY SAYING, UM, A CHIEF OF POLICE MUST POSSESS CERTAIN QUALITIES.
UM, AND THAT'S WITHIN ANY, UH, LOCATION OR ASSIGNMENT THAT THEY TAKE ON.
UH, ONE OF THOSE ARE THE FIRST, I WOULD SAY THEY HAVE TO BE A TRUE LEADER.
UH, BESIDES BEING A LEADER, THEY HAVE TO BE A, A COORDINATOR AND A DIRECTOR.
UH, THOSE THREE THINGS, UH, ARE REQUIRED TO ENSURE COMMUNICATION TO ENSURE, UM, THE MANAGEMENT OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
BUT IF I HAD TO ADD A FOURTH, I WOULD SAY UNIFY, YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO UNIFY AND BRING PEOPLE TOGETHER.
YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO, UH, ALLOW YOURSELF AND YOUR OFFICERS TO BE ABLE TO EXPRESS AND TO BE ABLE TO PULL IN THE COMMUNITY, BECAUSE THAT'S WHO WE SERVE.
AND THAT'S BOTH INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY, WITHIN AND WITHOUT, AND OUTSIDE OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UM, I WOULD LIKE TO, IT KEEPS TURNING OFF.
UM, MY QUESTION COMES FROM CATEGORY SEVEN, EXTERNAL ACCOUNTABILITY.
UM, UH, THE MAYOR HAS COMMITTED TO POLICE REFORM, AND SOMETHING THAT MY GROUP TOGETHER, BATON ROUGE, IS VERY, IM, UH, FINDS VERY IMPORTANT, IS THE CONCEPT OF USING CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT.
UM, SO, UH, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS AND HOW MIGHT YOU UTILIZE A CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT TYPE AGENCY IF YOU ARE OUR NEXT CHIEF? UH, YES MA'AM.
UM, A CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT, UH, TOPIC THAT'S, UH, BEEN AROUND LAW ENFORCEMENT FOR QUITE A WHILE, BEEN QUITE A BIT OF DISCUSSION ON IT.
UH, I AM, UH, HAPPY TO SAY I WAS ABLE TO RESEARCH IT MYSELF, UH, PARTICULARLY WITH SOME OF MY COUNTERPARTS WITH THE NEW ORLEANS POLICE DEPARTMENT.
WE'VE HAD MANY CONVERSATIONS TO DISCUSS THEIR POLICIES, HOW IT ACTUALLY WORKS AND, AND, AND THE PROS AND CONS OF IT.
UH, WITH THAT, I CAN SAY THAT I, I HAVE NO PROBLEM WITH OVERSIGHT OF ANY MANNER.
UH, WE'VE SOMEWHAT ENACTED THAT SAME CONCEPT WITHIN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
WE HAVE WHAT'S CALLED THE CHIEF ADVISORY COMMITTEE.
UM, THAT COMMITTEE IS BROUGHT IN, AND THAT COMMITTEE IS ALLOWED TO HEAR THE ACTIONS, UH, WITHIN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, ALONG WITH POTENTIAL POLICY CHANGES AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
AND TO MAKE COMMENTS, UH, MATTER OF FACT, SEVERAL OF THE COMMENTS AND, AND SUGGESTIONS BROUGHT BY THAT COMMITTEE, UH, ACTUALLY LED TO POLICY CHANGE.
SO, UH, I HAVE NO ISSUES WITH IT.
UH, I GREW UP WITH A, A MOTHER WHO EMPHASIZED THAT IF YOU'RE DOING THE RIGHT THING, IT DOESN'T MATTER WHO'S LOOKING AT, YOU'RE WELCOME, PASTOR GIBSON.
UH, WHAT SKILLS OR ABILITIES YOU HAVE GAINED FROM YOUR CURRENT OR PREVIOUS ASSIGNMENTS THAT ALLOW YOU TO STAND OUT AMONG THE OTHER CANDIDATES? SECOND PART OF THE QUESTION IS, IN OTHER WORDS, WHAT DO
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YOU BRING TO THE TABLE BECAUSE OF THAT PRIOR EXPERIENCE? GREAT QUESTION.UH, REVEREND GIBSON, UM, I WILL SAY PROBABLY THE GREATEST THING IS I'VE DONE IT.
UM, I HAVE FOR THE LAST, ACTUALLY FIVE AND A HALF YEARS, AS I STATED, BEING AN ADMINISTRATIVE ROLE, UH, ON THE EXECUTIVE LEVEL.
THE LAST THREE YEARS, I'VE BEEN THE SECOND IN COMMAND WITHIN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UH, THAT MEANS IN THE CHIEF'S ABSENCE, ABSENCE, I AM THE APPOINTING AUTHORITY.
AND I CAN TELL YOU, UH, THE GROWTH THAT I'VE HAD OVER THE, THE FIVE PLUS YEARS, UH, HAS BEEN TREMENDOUS.
I AM RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR BUDGET.
UH, I HAVE HAD THE PLEASURE OF, UH, BEING THE PERSON WHO OVERSAW THE, THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THE EFFICIENCY STUDY THAT WAS DONE.
I'VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF FINDING THOSE SAVINGS WITHIN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT WHERE WE COULD RECOGNIZE RAISES FOR OUR POLICE OFFICERS.
SO, IN SHORT, SIR, I'M DOING THE JOB.
I'VE DONE THE JOB, AND I, I'M READY TO MOVE FORWARD AND CONTINUING TO DO THE JOB.
UM, MR. DANIELS, THIS IS FROM STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES.
UH, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HAS BEEN AN INCREASING PROBLEM IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND, UH, AS POLICE CHIEF, WHAT INITIATIVES OR IDEAS WOULD YOU BRING TO, TO DEAL WITH THAT? UH, YES, SIR.
UH, DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HAS BEEN SOMETHING THAT I HAVE ACTUALLY, UH, I'M ACTUALLY CONSIDERED A SUBJECT MATTER EXPERT IN.
I HAVE TESTIFIED IN, UH, IN CASES WITHIN, UH, PARISHES, UH, SURROUNDING HERE.
UH, I'VE INSTRUCTED ON THAT TOPIC FOR IN, IN EXCESS OF 10 YEARS AS A CONTRACTOR FOR THE ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE.
UM, AND WITH THAT, I HAVE A PASSION TO TRY MY BEST TO ERADICATE IT.
AND WITH ONE OF THE THINGS, UH, THAT WE'RE DOING, UM, RIGHT NOW, UH, WE'VE, WE HAVE ASSIGNED PERSONNEL TO INTENTIONALLY, UH, ADDRESS THOSE CONCERNS WITH ONE, WITH THE DA'S OFFICE.
ANOTHER, UH, WE HAVE A VICTIM'S ASSISTANCE COORDINATOR WHO ASSISTS VICTIMS OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, BUT ONE OF THE NEWEST INITIATIVES AND WILL BE BEFORE THE COUNCIL FOR INTRODUCTION ON IT.
VERY RECENT, VERY SOON, UH, IT ACTUALLY MAY BE WEDNESDAY, UH, HAS TO DO WITH ELECTRONIC MONITOR TO BE ABLE TO ASSIST EVEN AFTER WE MAKE THE ARREST ON KEEPING THOSE VICTIMS SAFE AND HOLDING THOSE PERPETRATORS ACCOUNTABLE.
UM, THAT ELECTRONIC MONITORING, UH, PRO PROGRAM WILL OPERATE THROUGH THE 19TH JDC.
AND AGAIN, UH, THAT'S ONE OF THE PROGRAMS THAT THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS COMMITTED THE FUNDING FOR THAT ENTITY.
HOW YOU DOING MS. DANIELS? I'M FINE, SIR.
UM, SO MY QUESTION COMES FROM THE SECTION OF ROLE OF POLICE.
WHAT ARE YOUR VIEWS ON THE PRESENCE OF LAW ENFORCEMENT WITHIN EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS? OKAY, MR. COLLINS, I, UH, THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION.
AND, AND I WILL TELL YOU THAT, UM, IT DEPENDS ON THE MANNER IN WHICH LAW ENFORCEMENT IS THERE.
UH, IN GENERAL, I TRULY SUPPORT LAW ENFORCEMENT BEING IN THE SCHOOL SYSTEMS AS RESOURCE OFFICERS.
UH, WE ARE SEEING GREAT SUCCESS FROM THAT.
THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS PILOTED THAT PROGRAM AT MCKINLEY HIGH SCHOOL OVER THE LAST SEVERAL YEARS.
UM, WE'RE SEEING, UM, QUITE A BIT OF SUCCESS FROM IT.
UM, THE OFFICERS EMBEDDED IN THOSE SCHOOLS, UH, TO INCLUDE, UH, THEMA HIGH SCHOOL AND OTHERS THAT HAVE OFFICERS WHO, WHO WORK THOSE, THOSE UH, AREAS.
UH, WE'VE SEEN GREAT THINGS STOPPED OR, OR BAD THINGS STOPPED PRIOR TO.
UM, IT ACTUALLY, IT HUMANIZES THOSE OFFICERS, THOSE OFFICERS DEVELOP RELATIONSHIP WITH THOSE KIDS AND RELATIONSHIPS WITH THOSE STAFF, AND IT ONLY HELP.
UM, AND THE OTHER PART OF IT IS, I THINK, FOR THE COMMUNITY, I THINK THEY FIND IT, UM, JUST A ANOTHER LEVEL
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OF SAFETY FOR THEIR CHILDREN WHILE THEY'RE THERE, KNOWING THAT THERE IS ACTUALLY A POLICE OFFICER ON SITE IF SOMETHING DOES HAPPEN.WITHOUT DISCUSSING ANY DETAILS REGARDING THE BRAVE CAVE AND RELATED ACCUSATIONS, WHAT STEPS WOULD YOU TAKE TO ENSURE THAT THERE IS A CULTURAL, IF THERE IS A CULTURAL ISSUE WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THAT THIS TYPE OF ALLEGED ACTIVITY WOULD NOT OCCUR AGAIN? OKAY.
UM, AND I PREFACE THE FACT THAT, UH, I DO HAVE TO BE VERY MINDFUL OF THE THINGS THAT I SAY REGARDING THAT TOPIC.
ONE, THERE IS A, UH, LAWSUIT FILED RELATIVE TO IT, OR, OR A FEW LAWSUITS FILED RELATIVE TO IT.
THE OTHER PART IS THERE ARE ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS ASSOCIATED WITH SOME OF THE ALLEGATIONS FROM THAT FACILITY THAT I WILL HAVE TO HEAR AND MAKE DECISIONS ON.
SO I, BUT I WILL ANSWER YOUR QUESTION TO THE BEST OF MY ABILITY.
UH, I THINK YOU'VE SEEN OUR INTENTIONAL EFFORTS, UH, WITHIN THIS ADMINISTRATION.
I THINK YOU'VE SEEN THE FACT THAT WE'VE TAKEN THE STEPS TO INVESTIGATE IT, NOT JUST CRIMINALLY OR NOT JUST ADMINISTRATIVELY, BUT CRIMINALLY AS WELL.
AND WITH THAT, UM, WE ALSO CHOSE TO HAVE AN, AN, A THIRD PARTY REVIEW OF IT AND INVOLVE THE FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION.
SO AT THE CONCLUSION OF IT, JUST AS WE DID WITH OUR NARCOTICS UNIT, THERE WILL BE A FULL AUDIT DONE ON PROCEDURES TO ENSURE THAT THERE ARE NO SYSTEMATIC, UH, ISSUES THAT ARE GOING ON.
AND AGAIN, WE'LL TAKE THE CORRECTIVE STEPS AT THAT POINT IN TIME.
UM, RIGHT NOW, WE'VE ALREADY TAKEN CORRECTIVE STEPS, HAVING REASSIGNED THOSE PERSONNEL AND ALSO ENSURING THAT THAT FACILITY IS NOT YOU.
THIS IS A MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITY WITH THRIVING REFUGEE AND IMMIGRANT AND THRIVING REFUGEE AND IMMIGRANT POPULATION.
PLEASE DETAIL WHAT, IF ANY, EXPERIENCE YOU HAVE EFFECTIVELY PROVIDING PUB PUBLIC SAFETY PROGRAMS IN PLACE FOR PARTNERING WITH THESE COMMUNITIES.
WELL, I CAN TELL YOU, I'M A PEOPLE PERSON.
UH, I THINK I SPEAK TO EVERYBODY I PASS AND I, I SMILE AT EVERYBODY I PASS, UH, THROUGH THOSE EFFORTS BECAUSE I REALIZE THAT YOU HAVE TO, TO BE APPROACHED, YOU HAVE TO BE FRIENDLY.
AND WITH THAT OVER THE YEARS, UH, I DO RESPECT THE FACT THAT WE NEED DIVERSITY THROUGHOUT.
WE TALKED ABOUT SOME OF THE RECRUITMENT EFFORTS, AND THOSE WERE SOME OF THE EFFORTS THAT WE WERE INTENTIONAL ON PUSHING FORWARD TO ENSURE THAT WE COULD FIND, UH, UH, RECRUITS AND POLICE OFFICERS FROM THE DIFFERENT DEMOGRAPHICS.
UM, WITH THAT, WE'VE ALSO CREATED LIAISON POSITIONS WITHIN ALL OF THOSE COMMUNITIES.
UH, AND IT DOESN'T MATTER WHETHER IT'S, UH, LATIN COMMUNITY, THE L-G-B-T-Q, UH, COMMUNITY, OR, UH, THE JEWISH COMMUNITY, THE BLACK COMMUNITY, YOU NAME IT, WE HAVE A LIAISON WITHIN THOSE ORGANIZATIONS.
I SUPPORT DIVERSITY WHOLEHEARTEDLY AND DOING EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN TO, UH, BRING EVERYONE WITHIN.
THE REASON I DO THAT IS BECAUSE I THINK DIVERSITY, UH, BRINGS NOT ONLY DIVERSITY OF RACE AND, AND GENDER AND ALL THOSE OTHER THINGS, BUT IT ALSO BRINGS DIVERSITY OF THOUGHT.
AND THAT DIVERSITY OF THOUGHT IS WHAT PROVIDES US WITH MORE KNOWLEDGE, STRENGTHENS US AS PEOPLE, AND HELPS US TO UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER AND BETTER, TO BETTER BE ABLE TO COMMUNICATE AND INTERACT AND LIVE WITHIN WITH EACH OTHER.
OKAY, MR. DANIELS, SO TAKING IN MIND WHAT YOU'VE SAID ABOUT THE, THE, THE BRAVE CAVE AND ONGOING DISCUSSIONS, UH, IN CATEGORY SEVEN EXTERNAL ACCOUNTABILITY, IT STATES, HOW WILL YOU INSTILL TRUST WITH THE PUBLIC REGARDING THE MOST RECENT ABUSE BY OFFICERS IN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT? PARTICULARLY, UH, CONSIDERING THAT, AT LEAST IN SOME EXPERIENCE, IT APPEARS THAT LIKE THERE MIGHT HAVE BEEN SOME OVERLAP PER SE WITH NARCOTICS.
HOW CAN YOU INSTILL TRUST IN THE COMMUNITY, SEEING AS THERE ARE CERTAINLY ALWAYS GOING TO BE DIVISIONS WORKING TOGETHER IN SOME WAY AND CROSSOVER? YEAH.
SO, UM, THE, THE KEY WORD THAT I I HEARD YOU SAY IS TRUST.
[00:55:01]
TRUST IS NOT A ONE-TIME INTERACTION.IT IS A CONSTANT FLUID PROCESS, UH, TO BUILD AND STRENGTHEN THAT TRUST WITHIN OUR COMMUNITIES.
I THINK THAT WHAT YOU'VE SAW IS OVER THE MANY YEARS AS WE'VE IMPLEMENTED PROCEDURAL ADDRESS JUSTICE, UH, TRAINING WITHIN OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT, THAT THOSE OFFICERS ARE TAKING EVERY CONTACT THAT THEY HAVE WITH THE PUBLIC AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO IMPROVE AND BUILD ON THAT TRUST, UH, TO BREAK DOWN THOSE BARRIERS THAT TO HISTORY AS, UH, ERECTED, UM, FOR MANY, MANY YEARS.
UH, SO WITH THAT, I, I THINK THAT THE PUBLIC UNDERSTANDS THAT ACCOUNTABILITY IS A MUST.
THEY'VE WATCHED AND WITNESSED THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND ITS STAFF, UH, FROM EXECUTIVE LEVEL ON, UH, HOLD THOSE WHO ARE PERPETRATORS OF POLICE MISCONDUCT ACCOUNTABLE.
AND, UH, AS THE CHIEF STOOD HERE, UH, PROBABLY A FEW WEEKS AGO AND MENTIONED ALL OF THE ARREST AND TERMINATIONS AND THINGS ALONG THOSE LINES.
SO I THINK AS, AS LONG AS WE'RE DOING, UH, THE RIGHT THING, THAT WE WON'T HAVE A PROBLEM, UH, FOSTERING THAT TRUST AMONG THE COMMUNITY.
MR. DANIELS, I'M COMING FROM THE CATEGORY OF PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP AS WE EMBARK ON THIS NEW SEASON.
PLEASE SHARE ANY THOUGHTS YOU HAVE ABOUT THE OVERALL DIRECTION AND OUTLOOK FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
UM, JUST TO GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT IDEA OF ABOUT MY LEADERSHIP STYLE, I'M A POSITIVE LEADER.
UH, I BELIEVE THAT WE HAVE TO APPROACH EVERYTHING AS POSITIVELY AS WE CAN.
UM, AS WE MOVE FORWARD, I'M GONNA ASK YOU TO REPEAT THE QUESTION.
I WANNA MAKE SURE I GOT THE SECOND PART RIGHT AS WE EMBARK ON THIS NEW SEASON.
PLEASE SHARE ANY THOUGHTS YOU HAVE ABOUT THE OVERALL DIRECTION AND OUTLOOK FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
SO THAT OVERALL DIRECTION AND OUTLOOK, AS I SAID, AS AS BEING A POSITIVE LEADER.
UM, I SEE THE WIND, I SEE HOW WE HAVE BROKEN DOWN THOSE BARRIERS WITHIN THIS COMMUNITY.
UM, CRIME REDUCTION IS SOMETHING THAT MANY WOULD, WOULD TALK ABOUT THROUGHOUT AND CONTINUE TO TALK ABOUT, BUT I CAN TELL YOU I'VE SEEN THOSE EFFORTS.
I'VE SEEN WHAT DIFFERENCE, WHAT A DIFFERENCE, UH, A POLICE DEPARTMENT THAT CARESS ABOUT THE COMMUNITY AND HAS A STANDARD AND A DIRECTION TO GO IN HOW THEY WILL MOVE.
I AM VERY CONFIDENT IN THE DIRECTION THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT IS MOVING IN.
THERE'S A LOT OF REFORM THAT'S TAKING PLACE AND HAS TAKEN PLACE, AND THAT IS NOT EASY.
AND, BUT NEVERTHELESS, WE ARE MOVING IN A POSITIVE DIRECTION.
WE'RE SEEING THE, THE FRUITS OF OUR LABOR.
AS WE CAN NOTE, JUST BY THE, THE VIOLENT CRIME NUMBERS, WE'RE SEEING A REDUCTION OF 46 PLUS PERCENT OF HOMICIDES.
WE'RE SEEING ABOUT THE SAME NUMBER, ACTUALLY A LITTLE HIGHER OF NON-FATAL SHOOTINGS REDUCED FROM 20 TO 22 TO PRESENT.
THEY ARE CONTINUOUSLY OUT THERE WORKING HARD FOR THE COMMUNITY.
AND I DON'T THINK THAT IT'S GOING TO CHANGE ANYTIME SOON.
UH, HOW WOULD YOU ADDRESS RECRUITING RE THIS COMES FROM RECRUITMENT, RETENTION, AND PERSONNEL SUPPORT.
HOW WILL YOU ADDRESS RECRUITING RETENTION CONCERNS WITHOUT SACRIFICING QUALITY OF THE OFFICERS YOU HIRE? OKAY.
UM, IRONICALLY, RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION HAS BEEN SOMETHING THAT, UH, HAS BEEN KIND OF NEAR AND DEAR TO ME.
UH, I SPENT MANY YEARS DOWN AT THE TRAINING ACADEMY AS AN INSTRUCTOR AND WORKED FIRSTHAND WITH RECRUITING FOR MANY YEARS.
UH, ACTUALLY MY PROJECT, UH, IN GRAD GRADUATE SCHOOL, UH, MY RESEARCH PROJECT WAS BASED ON RECRUITMENT.
UM, MAINLY TO GET RID OF THAT CONSENT DECREE AND, AND HOW WE CAN BETTER OURSELVES.
I CAN TELL YOU THAT I BELIEVE THAT IT'S NOT ABOUT THE QUANTITY, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE QUALITY.
IF WE RECRUIT OR LOWER OUR STANDARDS, WHICH I DON'T BELIEVE IN, UM, WE'LL END UP, IN MY OPINION, PAYING FOR IT DEARLY ON THE BACK END.
[01:00:01]
SO I'D RATHER HAVE THE QUALITY.AND WE, WE HAVE A, A RECRUITER NOW WHO'S, UH, HE'S MOVING OUTSIDE OF THE BOX.
HIS, UH, HIS, HIS METHODS ARE DIFFERENT.
UH, WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO RETHINK AND, AND, AND RE-ENVISION HOW THINGS SHOULD BE DONE.
AND I, WE ARE GETTING SOME VERY QUALITY, UH, APPLICANTS.
WE'RE SEEING, UM, APPLICANTS COME IN FROM OUT OF STATE NOW, UH, WISHING TO JOIN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND WHEN WE TALK ABOUT THE RETENTION PORT PORTION OF IT, UH, MATTER OF FACT, TODAY, AN OFFICER WHO ONCE WORKED FOR US WHO MOVED TO HOUSTON, UH, STARTED BACK WITH US, A VERY DECORATED EXEMPLARY OFFICER, AND THIS BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT DREW HIM BACK.
SO, UM, I THINK RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION IS DEFINITELY MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
UH, MY, UH, QUESTION IS COMING FROM PERSONAL APPROACH, UM, YOU HAVE A LOT OF STAKEHOLDERS THAT ARE LOOKING AT BRPD, THAT INCLUDES OFFICERS, THAT INCLUDES THE COMMUNITY, IT CAN INCLUDES THE UNIONS, UH, POLITICIANS, UH, WHEN, UH, UH, AND THEY HAVE TO UNDERSTAND AND HAVE FAITH IN THE JUSTIFICATION FOR YOUR DECISIONS.
SO HOW WILL YOU, HOW WILL YOU DEAL WITH THAT, UH, IF YOU'RE THE CHIEF, UH, HAVING TO JUGGLE ALL THE DIFFERENT PEOPLE THAT YOU HAVE TO KEEP HAPPY
UH, AND THE COMMUNITY AS A WHOLE HAS TO BE ADDED TO THAT, THAT, THAT NUMBER AS WELL.
UM, YES, I HAVE NO ISSUES, UM, WITH BEING OPEN AND TRANSPARENT.
I THINK THAT IS A HUGE PART OF THE LINES OF COMMUNICATION WHEN WE CAN BE SPOKEN TO OR, OR, OR ASKED ABOUT OUR DECISIONS AND HAVE NO ISSUES SHEDDING LIGHT ON WHY WE MADE THE DECISIONS WE MADE AND OUR RATIONALE BEHIND THOSE.
UM, BUT I WILL SAY I DON'T THINK IT'S THAT CHALLENGING.
I THINK IF YOU'RE OPERATING UNDER THE PRINCIPLE OF ETHICS AND YOU'RE PROVIDING, UH, TRUTH REGARDLESS OF WHAT IT IS, UH, I AM, AND I WILL, I'LL OPENLY SAY IT, I DON'T BELIEVE IN, IN TELLING THE STORY TO TWO DIFFERENT PEOPLE AND IT BEING DIFFERENT.
I'M NOT GOING TO ALWAYS MAKE EVERYBODY HAPPY, BUT I WILL BE HONEST WITH YOU.
AND I THINK THAT GOES A LONG WAY.
UH, I THINK THAT JUST AS, UH, SOME OF THE STAKEHOLDERS MAY NOT HAVE LIKED SOME OF THE, UH, DECISIONS WE'VE MADE, AND THEY'VE OPENLY VOICED THEM AND WE WELCOME IT, UH, BUT THEY TRUST THAT WE ARE DOING WHAT WE CAN.
PASTOR, PASTOR GIBSON, UH, CAN YOU SHARE YOUR INSIGHTS ON THE BROKEN WINDOWS APPROACH AND STOP AND FRISK TACTICS? UH, THE BROKEN WINDOW APPROACH, UM, UH, IT'S A, A THEORY THAT'S BEEN AROUND FOR QUITE SOME TIME AS WELL AS STOP FRISK.
UM, BUT I, I WILL SAY THE BROKEN WINDOW APPROACH, UH, WE'RE DOING A LOT OF THINGS RIGHT NOW AND I SUPPORT IT WHOLEHEARTEDLY.
UM, THAT PLACE, NETWORK INVESTIGATIONS, AND THAT, THAT PROCESS OF INCLUDING EVERYONE, UH, WITHIN THE, THE PROCESS OF SOLVING, UH, PROBLEMS WITHIN THE COMMUNITY, UM, I DO BELIEVE THAT WE'VE SEEN THE EFFORTS, UH, A LOT OF THOSE COME FROM, UH, SAFE, UH, HOPEFUL, HEALTHY VR, UH, YOU SEE HOW WE WORK TOGETHER, UH, FROM BLIGHT TO THE ACTUAL ENFORCEMENT OF LAW.
SO I, I, I TRULY UNDERSTAND AND, AND APPRECIATE AND SEE THE VALUE IN THAT STOP AND FRISK, UM, MADE VERY POPULAR OR CONTROVERSIAL BY NEW YORK CITY.
UM, I WILL TELL YOU, UH, I THINK IT'S BEEN TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT ON SO MANY OCCASIONS.
UH, THERE ARE TWO WORDS, STOP AND RISK.
JUST BECAUSE A PERSON'S STOP DOES NOT MEAN THAT THE LAW, UH, ALLOWS FOR THAT PERSON TO BE FRISKED OR SEARCHED.
THERE ARE A LOT OF LAWS THAT PROTECT IT, UH, PARTICULARLY THOSE UNDER CONSTITUTIONALLY.
THE FOURTH AMENDMENT, UH, THE CASE LAW THAT'S FAMOUS OR GOES ALONG WITH THAT IS TERRY
[01:05:01]
V OHIO.AND WITH IT AGAIN, UH, I THINK THAT, UH, ONCE YOU MEET THAT FIRST BURDEN, THE ONLY TIME, ONLY TIME THAT A RISK SHOULD OCCUR, UH, THE RULES ARE VERY SPECIFIC.
IT INCLUDES, UH, WHAT AREAS ARE AND, AND NOT TO BE INVADED, SUCH AS THE OUTER CLOTHING MUST BE, UH, PADDED DOWN.
AND IT'S ONLY, IT IS NOT TO LOOK FOR EVIDENCE.
IT IS ONLY TO DETECT POTENTIAL DANGERS.
AND THAT HAS TO BE ARTICULATE, ARTICULATED BEFORE THAT COULD EVER HAPPEN.
AND IF, AGAIN, IF THE STOP ISN'T RIGHT, THE FRISK ISN'T RIGHT.
MR. DANIELS, UM, WHAT IS YOUR, THIS IS FROM LEADERSHIP CULTURE AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
UH, WHAT IS YOUR APPROACH TO WORKING WITH THE POLICE UNION? DO YOU SEE SOME AVENUES FOR IMPROVING RELATIONS WITHOUT COMPROMISING ACCOUNTABILITY? AND WOULD YOU TALK ABOUT YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? I WILL.
UM, I HAVE BEEN A MEMBER OF, UH, ALL THREE ORGANIZATIONS WITHIN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT, UH, THAT IS THE MAGNOLIA STATE PEACE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION.
UM, THE FRATERNAL ORDER OF POLICE LODGE ONE, AND THE, UH, LOCAL 2 37 UNION OF POLICE FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I HAVE NO PROBLEM WORKING WITH ANYONE, UH, BUT I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT COMPROMISING ACCOUNTABILITY IS EVEN, UH, SOMETHING THAT WE CAN EVEN ENTERTAIN.
AND I UNDERSTAND AND I RESPECT, UH, THE UNION'S, UH, DUTIES AS FAR AS REPRESENTING, UH, THEIR MEMBERSHIP, BUT RIGHT IS RIGHT.
AND IT DOESN'T MATTER, UH, WHETHER YOU'RE A UNION MEMBER OR YOU HAVE ELECTED NOT TO ENROLL IN ANY OTHER THREE, BUT WE HAVE TO WORK TOGETHER.
AGAIN, LIKE I SAID, UM, WE'VE HAD SOME CONFRONTATIONAL, UH, UM, RELATIONSHIPS, UM, AND IN THE PAST, UH, WE HAVE SEEN THAT THEY HAVE GOTTEN BETTER.
UH, BUT WE STILL HAVE A LONG WAY TO GO AND WE CAN'T GIVE UP.
WE HAVE TO CONTINUE TO TRY TO, TO MOVE THOSE RELATIONSHIPS FORWARD BECAUSE THEY ARE A PART OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND, UH, THEY ALSO HAVE A, UM, THEY'RE THERE FOR COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AS WELL WITH THE CITY.
UH, THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR PROAM, UH, POINT OF PRIVILEGE.
I'D BE, UH, NOT RIGHT IF I DIDN'T RECOGNIZE THE FACT THAT THE GREATEST SORORITY KNOWN TO MAN AND WOMAN HAS ENTERED THE ROOM.
AND THAT'S THE LOVELY LADIES OF ZA PHI BETA SORORITY INCORPORATED.
UH, I JUST WANTED TO MAKE SURE WE POINTED THAT OUT.
RIGHT, RIGHT, RIGHT BEHIND YOU.
UH, MR. DANIELS, I, UH, MR. DANIEL, UH, I APPRECIATE, UH, YOUR WILLINGNESS TO DISCUSS YOUR IA FILE HERE ON THE FLOOR.
UM, BUT MY NEXT QUESTION IS FROM STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES, PLEASE DISCUSS WITH US IP AS YOU HAVE FOR VIOLENCE REDUCTION IN OUR COMMUNITY.
UM, VIOLENCE REDUCTION IN OUR COMMUNITY, I, I CAN, UH, I TALKED ABOUT, AND THIS IS NOT MY FIRST TIME APPEARING BEFORE, UH, THIS COMMITTEE, SOME OF THE FACES HAVE CHANGED, BUT I'VE, I'VE BEEN HERE, UH, BEFORE AND THEN I PREVENT, I PRESENTED A STRATEGY.
UM, I BELIEVE THAT SIMPLICITY IS THE GREATEST OF, OF THE APPROACHES THAT WE SHOULD TAKE.
UM, WE HAVE TO LEARN TO REALIZE THAT WE CAN'T SOLVE THIS PROBLEM BY OURSELVES.
IT IS A COMMUNITY ISSUE, AND THEREFORE THE COMMUNITY HAS TO BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION.
UM, MOVING FORWARD, I, I SEE COMMUNITY OUTREACH AS AS IMPORTANT.
I SEE THAT AND BELIEVE WHOLEHEARTEDLY THAT WE HAVE TO BE ABLE TO PREVENT IT OR INTERVENE BEFORE WE HAVE TO GO INTO THE ENFORCEMENT, UH, PORTION OF IT.
I AM, UH, UH, I TALKED BACK THEN, AND I STILL AGREE WITH THE FACT OF, I THINK, UH, DATA-DRIVEN, UH, POLICING METHODS IS IMPORTANT.
TECHNOLOGY IS DEFINITELY NEEDED.
UM, WE'VE FEEL FIGURED OUT THAT THEY ARE TRUE FORCE MULTIPLIERS IN THIS PROCESS, AND THERE'S A CONCEPT OUT THERE, UM, THAT WE HAVE
[01:10:01]
TO, AGAIN, I TALKED ABOUT THE MONITORING SYSTEM AND THINGS, UH, TO ASSIST EVEN AFTER THE ARREST.I STILL BELIEVE IN THE REHABILITATION PROCESS.
AND WHEN WE HAVE THE COMMUNITY INVOLVED IN IT, THOSE, UH, THOSE INTERRUPTERS WHO, WHO GO OUT AND DO THE WORK AND WHO CAN HELP PREVENT IT, ONLY STRENGTHENS THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
SO MY APPROACH IS VERY SIMPLE.
IT TAKES THE COMMUNITY FOR RESOLUTION.
MY QUESTION COMES FROM PERSONAL APPROACH IN LEADERSHIP.
WHAT DOES THE FIRST 100 DAYS LOOK LIKE? RANK THE TOP FIVE PRIORITIES IN YOUR PROCESS FOR ACCOMPLISHING THEM.
UM, MY FIRST 100 DAYS WILL BE A LITTLE DIFFERENT.
THE TRANSITION IS A LITTLE EASIER BECAUSE OF WHAT I DO ALREADY.
UM, BUT I, I WOULD SAY, UH, MY TOP FIVE PRIORITIES, UH, THE FIRST PRIORITY IS I, I MENTIONED IT BEFORE, STRENGTHENING THOSE COMMUNITY RELATIONS AND TRUST.
I BELIEVE IN THAT WHOLEHEARTEDLY.
MY SECOND PRIORITY, UH, IS THE REDUCTION OF CRIME.
MY THIRD PRIORITY WOULD BE THE MORALE OF OUR POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I HAVE ALWAYS SAID THAT WE HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING THAT WE CAN TO HAVE A WILLING, UH, CARING POLICE OFFICER, A WHOLE POLICE OFFICER THERE.
UM, THE FOURTH, UH, WOULD BE THE RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION THAT I TALKED ABOUT, BEING ABLE TO PROVIDE EVEN MORE SERVICE TO THE COMMUNITY AND THOSE WITHIN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND THEN THE FIFTH IS ONE THAT I, I THINK PEOPLE DON'T PUT ENOUGH EMPHASIS ON, AND THAT'S OFFICER WELLNESS.
UM, WE ASK OFFICERS TO DO A LOT.
UH, THEY SUFFER FROM THE SAME TRAUMA.
UH, BUT THE DIFFERENCE IS THEY DO IT ON A DAILY BASIS.
AND SO WE HAVE TO MAKE SURE OUR OFFICERS ARE, ARE HEALTHY AND, AND, AND THAT'S BOTH PHYSICALLY AND MENTALLY.
AND SO, OFFICER WELLNESS WOULD BE MY FIFTH LAST, BUT CERTAINLY NOT LEAST.
WHAT IS, HOW DO YOU PLAN TO IMPROVE RELATIONS BETWEEN THE PO BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND THE BLACK COMMUNITY? UM, MY PLAN HAS ALWAYS BEEN YOU HAVE TO BE THERE.
YOU HAVE TO BE WITHIN THE COMMUNITY.
YOU CAN'T SOLVE IT FROM 9,000 AIRLINES SITTING IN THE OFFICE ON THE THIRD FLOOR.
YOU HAVE TO BE OUT THERE IN THE COMMUNITY WHERE PEOPLE ARE COMFORTABLE ENOUGH TO BE ABLE TO TALK WITH YOU, TO TOUCH YOU, UH, TO, TO UNDERSTAND THAT YOU ARE THERE AND YOU ACTUALLY CARE.
UM, YOU KNOW, I'M A PRODUCT OF THIS CITY, BORN AND RAISED IN NORTH BATON ROUGE.
UM, AND I CAN TELL YOU, UH, I STILL, I DOESN'T MATTER WHO YOU ARE, DOESN'T MATTER WHAT YOU DO, UM, I STILL BELIEVE THAT THIS COMMUNITY IS STRONG, AND THIS COMMUNITY IS VERY STRONG, AND YOU CAN BRIDGE THOSE GAPS.
BUT IT TAKES A PERSONAL, INTENTIONAL.
AND AS A FRIEND OF MINE SAYS, AN INTIMATE IMPACT, IT DOESN'T, IT HAS TO BE DIRECT IN MOST CASES, MEANING I HAVE TO INTENTIONALLY DO WHAT I CAN TO BRIDGE THAT GAP WITH NOT PUT A POLICY IN PLACE.
BUT WHEN YOU HAVE BUY-IN FROM THOSE WITHIN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, UH, OF COMMUNITY POLICING, AND THE COMMUNITY WHO BELIEVES IN TRUST AND THEY SEE THE SERVICE THAT YOU'RE PROVIDING, AND IT IS ACCEPTABLE TO THEM, UH, THAT TIME SPENT, UH, ON NON-ENFORCEMENT, UH, PIECES IS PRICELESS.
MR. D AND I HAVE TWO MINUTES TO MAKE A CLOSING STATEMENT.
AND AGAIN, IT'S AN HONOR TO HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY, AND I THANK ALL OF YOU IN ATTENDANCE, AND THAT INCLUDES THOSE WHO ARE HERE PRESENT AS WELL AS WHO MAY BE MONITORING, UH, ONLINE.
UH, I APPRECIATE THE FACT THAT PEOPLE TAKE TIME AND, AND THEY'RE INTERESTED IN WHO THEIR NEXT CHIEF OF POLICE IS.
AS I WAS HERE BEFORE THE COMMITTEE SIX YEARS AGO, UH, TO DATE, UH, YOU'LL SEE CONSISTENCY
[01:15:01]
IN ME AND MY PHILOSOPHIES.SOME OF THOSE PHILOSOPHIES AND IDEAS, UH, THEN ARE THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN ACCOMPLISHED, AND WE ARE NOW TAUNTING AS SUCCESSES WITHIN OUR AGENCY FOR THAT.
UM, I CAN HONESTLY SAY I'M VERY PROUD TO HAVE PLAYED A PART IN IT.
AND AGAIN, THAT GOES FROM MY RECRUITING STRATEGY TO ENDING THE, UH, CONSENT DECREE TO COMMUNITY OUTREACH TO THAT DATA-DRIVEN POLICING.
BUT ONE THING I WOULD SAY, AS I CONCLUDE, I STAND BEFORE YOU WITH FIRSTHAND EXPERIENCE AND KNOWLEDGE OF THE CHALLENGES AND EXPECTATION OF THIS POSITION.
I AM READY TO MEET THOSE CHALLENGES AND WHATEVER EVIL HEAD ON, AND TO KEEP BATON ROUGE SAFE AND TO LEAD THIS GREAT POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I WILL SAY, SOME MAY THINK IT'S RATHER BOLD THAT I, I SAY THAT I AM READY TO MEET THOSE EVILS HEAD ON, BUT THIS IS JUST AN EXAMPLE OF MY SACRIFICE AND DEDICATION TO THIS COMMUNITY.
UH, BESIDES ONE OF MY SPIRITUAL LEADERS ALWAYS SAYS, IF YOU'VE NEVER MET THE DEVIL FACE TO FACE, THEN YOU'RE PROBABLY TRAVELING IN THE SAME DIRECTION,
SO, WHILE I'VE BEEN FIGHTING EVIL MY ENTIRE LIFE, I TRULY BELIEVE IN MY CALLING, AND IT IS MY CALLING, AND I WILL REMAIN OBEDIENT REGARDLESS OF THE EVIL THAT COME MY WAY.
UH, IN ROMANS CHAPTER 1221, THAT STATEMENT, YES, SIR, BE NOT OVERCOME OF EVIL, BUT OVERCOME EVIL WITH GOOD.
I'M GOOD FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND ALL THAT COMBINED MAKES ME THE BEST CANDIDATE FOR THE CHIEF OF THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MR. DANIELS FOR INTERVIEWING WITH THE CHIEF OF POLICE INTERVIEW COMMITTEE.
WE SINCERELY APPRECIATE YOU, UH, AT THIS TIME.
AND SIR, IF YOU WILL ALLOW ME, I DO HAVE A, A, UH, STRATEGY PLAN FOR EACH ONE OF YOU TO REVIEW.
AND, UH, I'LL BE, WE WELCOME ANY QUESTIONS THEREAFTER AFTER THIS THING STICK AROUND.
THE GENERAL PUBLIC IS GONNA ASK QUESTIONS AT THE END OF ALL THE INTERVIEWS.
MAY I HAVE QUESTIONS FOR YOU OR SOMETHING? YOU GONNA PASS THAT OUT, MR. MS. CHAMBER? YES.
CAN WE TAKE, LET'S TAKE A FIVE MINUTE BATHROOM BREAK.
WE RECESS FOR A BATHROOM BREAK.
MS. SHAMUS, WHERE THE SNACKS AND STUFF? YES.
CALL THIS MEETING BACK TO ORDER.
OUR NEXT CANDIDATE IS GOING TO BE S DOUGLAS.
AND AGAIN, JUST AS A REMINDER, PLEASE STATE THE CATEGORY YOUR QUESTION IS COMING FROM.
NOW, OUR COMMITTEE MEMBERS, I DO WANT TO SAY THIS, UH, 'CAUSE THIS CAME UP DURING THE BREAK.
IF YOUR SECOND QUESTION COMES AS A FOLLOW UP TO A, AN, UH, A QUESTION THAT HAS ALREADY BEEN ASKED, THAT'S FINE AS WELL.
YOU GOT THAT? IF YOUR SECOND QUESTION COMES AS A FOLLOW UP TO A QUESTION THAT'S ALREADY BEEN ASKED AND THE CANDIDATE OPENS UP THAT RESPONSE, THAT'S FINE AS WELL.
BUT JUST REMEMBER TWO QUESTIONS.
WE DON'T, WE DON'T WANNA BE HERE TILL THIS TIME TOMORROW.
PUT THAT CHAIR RIGHT THERE TO YOUR RIGHT.
THAT'S, WISH YOU GET NO, WISH YOU GET POINTS FOR NOT PUTTING IT ON THE FLOOR OR SO THAT
I THINK WE GOT ENOUGH POLICE IN HERE.
I'M THE CHAIR OF THE POLICE CHIEF SEARCH.
UH, THE WAY THE PROCESS IS GOING TO WORK, YOU'LL HAVE THREE MINUTES TO MAKE AN OPENING STATEMENT, AND THEN EACH COMMITTEE MEMBER CAN ASK YOU UP TO TWO QUESTIONS FROM 11 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES, EXCUSE ME, 12 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES.
WE CAN ASK UP TO TWO QUESTIONS FROM 12 DIFFERENT CATEGORIES.
WE HAVE TWO MINUTES TO ANSWER EACH QUESTION, AND THEN YOU CAN MAKE A TWO MINUTE CLOSING.
SO WE'RE GONNA START IT OFF, AND YOU'LL HAVE THREE MINUTES TO OPEN UP AND LET US KNOW WHEN YOU'RE READY.
[01:20:01]
READY ON YOU.I WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO INTERVIEW FOR A POLICE CHIEF.
I HAVE ALMOST 19 YEARS OF LAW ENFORCEMENT EXPERIENCE, AND I HAVE WORKED IN UNIFORM PATROL WHERE I SERVED AS A PATROL OFFICER AS WELL AS A FIELD TRAINING OFFICER.
I WORKED IN CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS WHERE I SERVED AS A VIOLENT CRIMES DETECTIVE.
I WORKED IN RECRUITING AND MY EFFORTS GOT US FROM UNDER THE CONSENT DECREE IN 2019.
I ALSO WORKED IN INTERNAL AFFAIRS WHERE I THOROUGHLY AND IMPARTIALLY INVESTIGATED POLICE MISCONDUCT.
I ALSO SERVED IN THE CHIEF'S OFFICE AS A SPECIAL PROJECT COORDINATOR WHO WORKED CLOSELY WITH CHIEF PAUL AND UNDER HIS LEADERSHIP.
AND PRIOR TO MY CURRENT POSITION, I SERVED AS A FULL-TIME ACADEMY INSTRUCTOR AND SUPERVISOR.
MY CURRENT ROLE NOW IS THE DIRECTOR OF TRAINING ACADEMY.
AND I'M RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DESIGN, THE IMPLEMENTATION, THE SELECTION, THE EVALUATION, AND THE MAINTENANCE OF ALL RECORDS FOR ALL TRAINING AND ALL TRAINERS OF THE DEPARTMENT.
AS A RESULT OF MY VARIED LAW ENFORCEMENT EXPERIENCE, I HAVE STRONG TRANSFERABLE SKILLS IN MANAGING PERSONNEL, LEADING, DIRECTING, ORGANIZING, COORDINATING STRATEGIC DEVELOPMENT, ESTABLISHING AND MAINTAINING PARTNERSHIPS, CREATING AND REVISING POLICY, ENGAGING IN CRITICAL DECISION MAKING, BUDGETING, EVALUATING, TRAINING NEEDS, PROVIDING TRAINING, IMPLEMENTING NEW INITIATIVES, AS WELL AS COMMUNICATING VISIONS.
IT HAS BEEN MY HONOR AND PRIVILEGE TO SERVE THE COMMUNITY IN VARIOUS CAPACITIES IN THE POSITIONS WHICH DEMONSTRATES MY ABILITY TO LEAD, TO MULTITASK, TO FOCUS, TO LEAD DIRECT, TO LEARN, IMPACT, MANAGE AND CONTROL VARIOUS RESPONSIBILITIES, SOMETIMES ALL AT THE SAME TIME.
I HAVE A BACHELOR'S DEGREE IN CRIMINAL JUSTICE, A MASTER'S IN BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION.
AND I'M ALL BUT, UH, ALL BUT DISSERTATION AND A DOCTOR OF EDUCATION AND ORGANIZATIONAL LEADERSHIP WITH AN EMPHASIS IN ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT.
OUTSIDE OF WORK I GIVE BACK AND I EMPOWER THE COMMUNITY DURING MY OFF TIME AS WELL.
I AM A PROUD MEMBER OF ZETA FIVE BETA SORORITY INCORPORATED, WHERE I CURRENTLY SERVE AS THE CHAPTER PRESIDENT OF OMICRON SIGMA ZETA.
I AM PASSIONATE ABOUT LAW ENFORCEMENT AND I STAND FIRM ON THE MISSION TO SERVE WITH THE BATON ROUGE COMMUNITY TO PREVENT CRIME AND TO PROMOTE THE SAFETY AND WELLBEING OF ALL, WHICH IS ALL IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE 21ST CENTURY POLICING PRINCIPLES.
I UNDERSTAND THE CHALLENGES AND THE CURRENT ISSUES THAT BRPD IS FACING, AND NOW MORE THAN EVER, I WANT TO LEAD THIS AGENCY TO IMPROVE OFFICER MORALE, OFFICER DEVELOPMENT, RETENTION TRAINING, IMPROVE JOB SATISFACTION TO ULTIMATELY IMPROVE POLICE COMMUNITY RELATIONS.
I'VE DONE THE WORK TO PREPARE FOR THIS ROLE, SO I'M CONFIDENT THAT MY VARIED SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE MAKE ME A STRONG FIT FOR THIS POSITION.
THIS MIGHT SOUND A BIT ALL OVER THE PLACE, BUT I'LL CLARIFY IT IF YOU NEED IT.
SO YOU HAVE QUITE THE EXTENSIVE RESUME INVESTIGATOR, DETECTIVE PATROL, OFFICER ACADEMY.
AND SO WOULD YOU SAY THAT THERE IS ANY SKILL, ABILITY, OR PRACTICE RELATED TO YOUR CURRENT OR FORMER ASSIGNMENTS THAT MIGHT BE IN INAPPLICABLE TO POLICE CHIEF? AND BY THAT I MEAN, IS THERE SOMETHING ABOUT YOUR CURRENT ROLE THAT'S TECHNICAL OR PRACTICAL FOR THAT ROLE, BUT MIGHT NOT TRANSLATE AS WELL TO POLICE CHIEF OR JUST ISN'T AS NECESSARY, YOU MIGHT SAY? THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION.
I BELIEVE EVERYTHING THAT I'VE DONE THROUGHOUT MY CAREER IS APPLICABLE TO SERVING AS THE POLICE CHIEF.
I STRATEGICALLY AND INTENTIONALLY ALIGN MYSELF AND PUT MYSELF OUT THERE TO GAIN SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE, LEARNING HOW THE INVESTIGATIVE PROCESS WORKS FOR CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS, LEARNING HOW TO INVESTIGATE POLICE MISCONDUCT, LEARNING HOW IMPORTANT TRAINING IS BECAUSE WHEN A LAWSUIT HAPPENS OR THERE IS POLICE MISCONDUCT OR SOME MISSTEPS THAT'S MADE ON LAW ENFORCEMENT, THE FIRST REQUEST THAT COMES IN IS THE TRAINING RECORDS.
YOU HA YOU HAVE A RICH TRAINING BACKGROUND.
DOMESTIC VIOLENCE HAS BEEN ON THE RISE IN OUR COMMUNITY AS POLICE CHIEF.
I'M SORRY, THIS TOPIC GETS, GETS
[01:25:01]
TO ME BECAUSE SOMETIMES I KNOW TOO MANY PEOPLE PERSONALLY WHO HAVE TO DEAL WITH THIS AS POLICE CHIEF, DO YOU HAVE IDEAS ON INITIATIVES THAT THE DEPARTMENT CAN'T INITIATE TO HELP REDUCE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE? THANK YOU FOR THAT QUESTION, MS. VICTORIAN.I PERSONALLY WAS A VICTIM OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE, SO IT'S NEAR AND DEAR TO MY HEART, WHICH IS WHAT LED TO MY DESIRE TO GO INTO THE VIOLENCE CRIMES DIVISION WHEN I SERVED IN THAT CAPACITY.
AS FAR AS INITIATIVES, I DO UNDERSTAND, AND I, I'VE WORKED IN OTHER CAPACITIES TO WHERE I WAS ABLE TO PARTNER WITH STAR, THE BUTTERFLY SOCIETY, AS WELL AS THE IRIS CENTER, UM, TO TRY TO RAISE AWARENESS IN SUCH THAT MANY BELIEVE THAT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS A PRIVATE THING, BUT ACTUALLY IT'S A COMMUNITY THING IN A SENSE BECAUSE WE HAVE LOVED ONES, WE HAVE FAMILY MEMBERS THAT MAY SEE THE SIGNS, BUT THINK IT'S NO LONGER THEIR BUSINESS.
AND I THINK SOME OF THE INITIATIVES THAT WE CAN IMPLEMENT, OR I WILL BE, UM, HONORED TO LEAD, IS TO DO MORE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AWARENESS TRAINING SESSIONS, NOT ONLY JUST IN SCHOOL SETTINGS, BUT IN, UH, I'M SORRY, IN SCHOOL SETTINGS, COMMUNITY AND COMMUNITY EVENTS, AS WELL AS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IS, THE AWARENESS IS IN OCTOBER.
I THINK IT SHOULD BE A YEAR-ROUND THING, BECAUSE IT HAPPENS YEAR ROUND.
I UNDERSTAND THAT EFFORTS ARE INCREASED, BUT I STILL THINK THAT THERE ARE THINGS WE CAN DO IN THE 11 MONTHS OF THE YEAR, WHETHER IT BE THE EDUCATIONAL PIECES, UM, PARTNERING WITH SCHOOLS, HIGHER LEARNING INSTITUTIONS, RELIGIOUS LEADERS, AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE TO HELP RAISE AWARENESS TO KIND OF GET MORE PEOPLE INVOLVED WITH COMBATING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.
UH, THIS QUESTION IS COMING FROM POSSIBLE QUESTIONS FOR CURRENT BRPD CANDIDATES.
THROUGHOUT YOUR CAREER AS AN OFFICER AT BRPD, WERE THERE ANY POLICIES OR PROCEDURES THAT YOU BELIEVE SHOULD HAVE BEEN MODIFIED OR ELIMINATED? AND IF SO, WHY? I PERSONALLY HAVE ONE THAT I WOULD LIKE TO ELIMINATE ALTOGETHER.
UM, RECENTLY I, UH, SOUGHT OUT AN OPPORTUNITY AND I FEEL AS THOUGH THE PROCESS WAS NOT FAIR.
AND ALTHOUGH IT EVENTUALLY WORKED OUT IN MY FAVOR MOVING FORWARD, I ACTUALLY SEE THAT AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO ELIMINATE THAT, TO TAKE, TAKE OUT OF THE, THE, THE NUANCES THAT KIND OF AFFECT THE DECISION MAKING IN THAT PROCESS THAT WOULD HAVE LED TO ME BEING DISENFRANCHISED AS A RESULT.
SO I DO HAVE ONE, PARTICULARLY FROM A PERSONAL STANDPOINT.
HOWEVER, I COULD ACTUALLY SEE ELIMINATING THAT PROBLEM, THAT POLICY COULD OPEN DOORS FOR OTHERS BEHIND ME.
SO WHERE THEY WON'T HAVE TO BE SUBJECTED TO THAT.
UH, I'M WITH TOGETHER BATON ROUGE, AND ONE OF OUR, UM, ISSUES THAT WE ARE STRONGLY BEHIND IS HAVING, UH, CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT, UH, IN, IN INCORPORATED WITH THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
SO, UH, I KNOW MAYOR BROOM IS COMMITTED TO POLICE REFORM AND, AND MAKING SURE COMPLAINTS AND CONCERNS ARE ADDRESSED.
IF YOU ARE A NEW CHIEF, UM, WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON WORKING WITH CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT OR IMPLEMENTING THAT IN YOUR ADMINISTRATION? VERY, VERY GOOD QUESTION.
IN 2017, WHEN I STOOD BEFORE THIS PLATFORM, I SAID THEN THAT I WAS OPEN TO SOME FORM OF CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT.
AND I STILL STAND ON THAT TODAY EVEN MORE NOW, CONSIDERING OUR CURRENT CIRCUMSTANCES.
THERE'S A LOT OF THINGS THAT NEED TO BE CONSIDERED OF WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE AND LOOKS LIKE IN THE BATON ROUGE COMMUNITY.
AND THERE'S A LOT OF DETAILS THAT NEED TO BE IRONED OUT BECAUSE THERE'S A COST THAT COMES WITH THAT.
[01:30:01]
SO SOME BUDGETARY RESTRICTIONS MAY BE AN ISSUE, BUT AT LEAST I AM WELCOME TO CONVERSING WITH COMMUNITY GROUPS, UH, POLITICAL BODIES, RELIGIOUS LEADERS TO, UH, FIGURE OUT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE FOR BATON ROUGE AND IRONING OUT THE DETAILS TO IMPLEMENT SOME FORM OF CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT.UM, THERE IS NO ONE SIZE FITS ALL.
UM, SOME AGENCIES UTILIZE A HYBRID MODEL.
WE JUST NEED TO SEE WHAT THAT WOULD LOOK LIKE FOR THE COMMUNITY HERE IN BATON ROUGE.
THIS POSITION IS CEO OF A MULTIMILLION DOLLAR ORGANIZATION, WHICH OVERSEES HUNDREDS OF STAFF AND MILLIONS OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS AND MANAGED THOUSANDS OF PHYSICAL RESOURCES.
WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED TO SERVE AT THIS LEVEL? AND PLEASE PROVIDE SPECIFIC DETAILS.
FIRST, I DON'T KNOW TOO MANY PEOPLE THAT MANAGE A BUDGET THAT SIZE, BUT I CAN SAY THE CLOSEST I GOT WAS TO OVERSEEING THE COLLECTIVE HEALING INITIATIVE, WHERE WE SPENT AN EXCESS OF $750,000 WHERE WE USE THOSE FUNDS TO, UM, POUR INTO THE COMMUNITY, UM, INTO GRASSROOT ORGANIZATIONS AND COMMUNITY GROUPS LIKE THE 100 BLACK MEN OF METRO BATON ROUGE, THE NAACP, WE PARTNERED THE BUTTERFLY SOCIETY.
UM, WE DID SO WELL WITH, UH, DOING THAT.
THE, THE GRANT WAS INITIALLY FOR $750,000.
HOWEVER, WE WERE SO COMMITTED TO THE WORK THAT WE WERE ABLE TO GET AN INCREASE SO THAT WE COULD FINISH ONE LAST ASPECT OF THAT PROGRAMMING THAT WE HAD.
BUT THAT IS THE CLOSEST THAT I'VE HAD TO, UH, THE MILLION DOLLAR BUDGET.
UM, AND I THINK WE DID A GREAT JOB.
THE TASK THAT I WAS GIVEN WAS SPEND IT ALL, AND WE SPENT IT ALL
UH, THIS IS FROM THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT CATEGORY.
UH, WHAT ARE YOUR PROPOSALS CONCERNING NETWORKING WITH OTHER SECTORS OF THE COMMUNITY, CHURCHES, NONPROFITS, ADVOCACY GROUPS, AND SO FORTH WHO WORK TO ADDRESS CAUSES OF CRIME, POOR EDUCATION, JOB OPPORTUNITIES, ADDICTION, ET CETERA? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? AGAIN, IT WAS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY FOR ME TO WORK WITH THE COLLECTIVE HEALING INITIATIVE AND TO OVERSEE THAT, THAT THAT GRANT, UM, IT ACTUALLY PUT ME IN ROOMS WITH A LOT OF FOLKS, UM, AND A LOT OF COMMUNITY GROUPS TO WHERE, UM, ONE THING THAT I TOOK AWAY FROM THAT IT ACTUALLY ENHANCE MY MINDSET AND ON HOW TO APPROACH AND TO SEE THINGS FROM DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES.
SO I DEFINITELY APPRECIATED DOING THAT.
UM, MOVING FORWARD, I WOULD LIKE TO CONTINUE THOSE RELATIONSHIPS AND THOSE PARTNERSHIPS THAT I WAS AFFORDED THE OPPORTUNITY TO ESTABLISH BACK THEN, SO THAT, BECAUSE WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT IT, THERE'S HUNDREDS OF CHURCHES IN THE, IN THE, IN THE BATON ROUGE COMMUNITY.
UM, SOME OF THEM ARE IN SOME DISINVESTED COMMUNITIES OR WHATNOT.
SO I BELIEVE THAT, UH, AND I THINK WHEN I WORKED IN A RECRUITING DIVISION, UM, IT USED TO BE THIS LIST OF CHURCHES THAT I WOULD EMAIL TO SAY, HEY, WE'RE HIRING OR WHATNOT.
I WOULD ACTUALLY LIKE TO EMPLOY THAT TO TRY TO SEE IF WE CAN COLLABORATE AND COME TOGETHER AND SCHEDULE SOME MEETINGS, SOME ROUND TABLE MEETINGS TO DEVELOP STRATEGIES SPECIFIC TO THE AREAS IN WHICH THOSE CHURCHES ARE.
I'M WILLING AND OPEN TO COMMUNI WORKING WITH COMMUNITY GROUPS AND GRASSROOTS ORGANIZATIONS AS WELL, JUST AS I'VE, I'VE BEEN DOING OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS.
MR. COLLINS, UH, THANK YOU, MR. MAYOR
UM, MS. DOUGLAS, YOUR, YOUR RESUME IS IN IMPRESS.
UH, YOU HAVE A TON OF EXPERIENCE, ADVANCED EDUCATION AND ALL THOSE GOOD THINGS, RIGHT? SO I WANT TO ASK YOU A QUESTION THAT'S KIND OF DEEPLY ROOTED IN POLICING, AND THAT'S WHAT'S YOUR STANCE ON THE DEPLOYMENT OF SWAT TEAMS AND THE EXECUTION OF NO-KNOCK WARRANTS? CAN YOU REPEAT THAT? I'M SORRY.
AND THIS COMES FROM STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES.
WHAT'S YOUR STANCE ON THE DEPLOYMENT OF SWAT TEAMS AND THE EXECUTION OF NO-KNOCK WARRANTS? SO TWOFOLD, THE DEPLOYMENT OF SWAT TEAMS AND THE EXECUTION YES, MA'AM.
OF NO-KNOCK WARRANTS, CONSIDERING I DID WORK IN VIOLENT CRIMES UNIT, WE, I OFTEN UTILIZE THE ASSISTANCE OF THE SWAT TEAM, UH, WHEN WE HAD THOSE VIOLENT OFFENDERS WHO WERE KNOWN TO HAVE, UH, WEAPONS, UH, PRETTY MUCH WEAPONS MORE POWERFUL THAN THE ONES WE WERE EQUIPPED WITH BACK IN THAT TIME.
[01:35:01]
UM, I DO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE HAS BEEN CONCERNS IN REGARD TO THE NO-KNOCK WARRANTS, BUT BASED ON MY EXPERIENCES AND THE SITUATIONS THAT I HAVE BEEN PUT IN, I ALSO UNDERSTAND THE VALUE OF HAVING TO UTILIZE NO-KNOCK WARRANTS BECAUSE OF THE SAFETY THAT IT CAN BRING, NOT ONLY TO THE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS WHO ARE THERE, BUT ALSO ANY OTHER SURROUNDING BYSTANDERS WHO MAY BE NEARBY.UM, SO I SEE THE VALUE IN IT, BUT I ALSO SEE THE, THE NEED FOR UTILIZING THE NO-KNOCK WARRANTS SPARINGLY.
MS. MATTHEWS, UM, MY QUESTION COMES FROM PERSONAL APPROACH IN LEADERSHIP, WHAT IS THE FIRST 100 DAYS LOOK LIKE? RANK THE TOP PRIORITIES IN YOUR PROCESS FOR ACCOMPLISHING THEM? MY FIRST 90 DAYS AS CHIEF GONNA BE BUSY
BUILDING TRUST AND LEGITIMACY IS PRETTY MUCH THE FIRST PILLAR IN 21ST CENTURY POLICING.
SO THAT IS A PRIORITY OF BUILDING TRUST AND LEGITIMACY BY COORDINATING, COORDINATING CONSISTENT AND INTENTIONAL COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT WITH ALL CITIZENS THROUGH VARIOUS PROGRAMS. I ALSO WANT TO BUILD TRUST AND LEGITIMACY THROUGH CONSISTENT AND INTENTIONAL ENGAGEMENT WITH AND TRAINING OF OUR EMPLOYEES TO INSPIRE THEM TO SERVE EFFICIENTLY, EFFECTIVELY, AND PROFESSIONALLY.
INTERNAL PROCEDURAL JUSTICE IS JUST AS IMPORTANT AS EXTERNAL PROCEDURAL JUSTICE, AND IN MY OPINION, I DON'T THINK WE DO THAT WELL.
INTERNAL PROCEDURAL JUSTICE, I DEFINITELY WANT TO MEET WITH ANOTHER PRIORITY IS MEETING WITH COMMUNITY GROUPS AS WELL AS UNION LEADERSHIP TO SEE WHERE WE COULD FIND A COMMON GROUND ON HOW WE CAN MOVE FORWARD TO SERVE THE BEST INTEREST OF THIS COMMUNITY.
I ALSO AM OPEN TO CONTINUING ON AS A PRIORITY THE CRIME FIGHTING STRATEGIES THAT HAVE PROVEN TO REDUCE CRIME, BUT CRIME IS STILL TOO HIGH.
SO IN ADDITION TO THE CRIME FIGHTING STRATEGIES THAT ARE IMPLEMENTED ARE IN PLACE RIGHT NOW, I ACTUALLY WANT TO EXPAND AND FIND OTHERS BY RESEARCHING, UM, COMPARABLE AGENCIES WHO MAY HAVE SOME OF THE SAME ISSUES THAT WE HAVE HERE AND TRY TO DEPLOY THOSE STRATEGIES HERE IN THE BATON ROUGE COMMUNITY.
MS. DOUGLAS, DESCRIBE A SITUATION, THIS IS COMING FROM PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP.
DESCRIBE A SITUATION WHERE YOU WERE MAKE, WHERE YOU MADE A DECISION THAT WAS MET WITH NEGATIVE OUTCOME.
HOW DID YOU HANDLE THE FEEDBACK FROM YOUR SUPERVISOR? HMM.
CAN YOU REPEAT THAT FOR ME ONE MORE TIME? SURE.
MR. COLE, DESCRIBE A SITUATION WHERE YOU MADE A DECISION THAT WAS MET WITH NEGATIVE, WITH A NEGATIVE OUTCOME.
HOW DID YOU HANDLE THE FEEDBACK FROM YOUR SUPERVISOR? UH OH, VERY GOOD ONE.
SO CONSIDERING THAT I WORKED IN THE CHIEF'S OFFICE AND THEN I TRANSFERRED OVER TO THE TRAINING ACADEMY, WE HAD AN, A LATERAL ACADEMY THAT WAS GOING ON.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I MESSED UP, BECAUSE I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER, BUT CHIEF PAUL REQUIRES ANYONE THAT GRADUATES AN ACADEMY TO KNOW THE VISION, MISSION, AND VALUES OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND WE HAD A GRADUATION SCHEDULED.
FAMILY SHOWED UP, WE WERE ALL IN THE CHIEF'S CONFERENCE ROOM, THEY'RE ALL DRESSED UP, READY TO GRADUATE.
CHIEF PAUL ASKED, THEY KNOW THE MISSION, VISION, AND VALUES, AND I'M LIKE, NOPE, I DIDN'T TAKE THAT WELL, BECAUSE OUT OF EVERYONE THAT WORKED IN THAT DIVISION, I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN BETTER.
AND, UH, THE GRADUATION WAS CANCELED.
THEY, UH, THE FAMILY MEMBERS THAT CAME IN, UM, IT WAS A BAD DAY FOR ME
[01:40:01]
'CAUSE I FELT LIKE IT WAS MY FAULT AND IT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN.SO WHAT I DID WAS ANY SUBSEQUENT TRAINING ACADEMIES BY WEEK FIVE, YOU'RE GONNA KNOW IT BY WEEK FIVE.
SO I HAVE IT STAGED TO WHERE SOMETHING LIKE THAT WOULD NEVER HAPPEN AGAIN.
I TOOK PERSONAL ACCOUNTABILITY FOR THAT BECAUSE I SHOULD'VE KNOWN BETTER AND I GOT CHEWED
SO I FORGOT TO SAY THE CATEGORY LAST TIME, SO I'LL REMEMBER THIS TIME.
IT'S CATEGORY SIX, LEADERSHIP, CULTURE, AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
SO WITHOUT DISCUSSING ANY DETAILS REGARDING THE BRAVE CAVE AND RELATED ACCUSATIONS, WHAT STEPS WOULD YOU TAKE TO ENSURE THAT IF THERE'S A CULTURAL ISSUE OF THIS TYPE WITHIN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, UH, HOW WOULD YOU ENSURE THAT THIS ACTIVITY WOULD NOT OCCUR AGAIN? WHAT WOULD YOU DRAW FROM YOUR ACADEMY EXPERIENCE, YOUR INTERNAL AFFAIRS EXPERIENCE, AND GENERALLY WHAT TYPES OF CHECKS OR BALANCES DO YOU THINK THERE NEED TO BE? SO FOR SURE, TRAINING, CONSISTENT TRAINING AND OVERSIGHT OF SOME SORT IS NECESSARY.
UM, I DO THINK IT TAKES A WHILE FOR THAT TYPE OF THINKING, FOR THE ALLEGED BEHAVIOR, THAT TYPE OF THINKING TO MANIFEST.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WOULD IMPLEMENT TO ENSURE THAT WE NEVER GET TO THAT POINT AGAIN, IS TO ANY DIVISION THAT WE HAVE, BECAUSE THERE'S VALUE AS IN THE TYPE OF WORK THAT IS DONE TO TARGET CRIME.
HOWEVER, I THINK THOSE SHOULD BE SHORT TERM ASSIGNMENTS TO WHERE WE ARE ROTATING PERSONNEL IN AND OUT, RATHER THAN ALLOWING THE SAME PEOPLE TO SIT IN A A WORK IN A DIVISION LIKE THAT FOR MONTHS AND YEARS AT A TIME.
AND WHEN I SAY SHORT TERM, I'M THINKING THREE FOUR MONTH ROTATION AND THEN ROTATE NEW SUPERVISION, NEW, UM, EMPLOYEES.
UH, SO THAT IS SOMETHING THAT I THINK WILL HELP WITH THE CHECKS AND BALANCES OF THAT.
IN ADDITION TO SOME POLICY CHANGES, THERE MAY BE SOME POLICY CHANGES THAT WE CAN, UH, REVISIT AS WELL AS SOME QUALITY ASSURANCE CHECKS TO WHERE WE MAY HAVE SOME, I GUESS, FOR LACK OF BETTER TERM, SOME RANDOM AUDITS.
UH, WE MAY BE KNOWING THAT THIS CERTAIN DIVISION MAY BE WORK IN THIS AREA, SO WE MAY HAVE SOMEONE FROM SENIOR LEADERSHIP OR TRAINING, UM, THE TRAINING STAFF TO ACTUALLY JUST KIND OF POP UP AND MONITOR.
THANK YOU SO MUCH MS. DOUGLAS.
DUE TO THE NATIONAL HIGH PROFILE CASES AND INCIDENTS ACROSS THE COUNTRY, LAW ENFORCEMENT IS NOT WELL RECEIVED OR SEEN AS TRUSTWORTHY IN MANY LOCAL COMMUNITIES.
WHAT WOULD YOU DO TO CHANGE THAT? THANK YOU.
SO GOING BACK TO THE COLLECTIVE HEALING INITIATIVE, LIKE I SAID, I WAS ABLE TO ESTABLISH SOME RELATIONSHIPS AND SOME PARTNERSHIPS, AND STILL TO THIS DAY, UM, I AM MAKING, I AM, THE DEPARTMENT IS ALLOWING, BUT I'M COORDINATING TO WHERE WE ARE PUTTING LAW ENFORCEMENT AND CITIZENS IN THE SAME ROOM.
WE HAVE THE TRAUMA TO TRUST INITIATIVE THAT'S GOING ON.
WE HAVE A COHORT THAT STARTS THIS THURSDAY.
UM, WE ALSO HAVE ANOTHER COHORT THAT STARTS, UH, EARLY NEXT MONTH WHERE I SEE THE GROWTH.
I SEE THE, UH, THE GROWTH AND MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING BY JUST HAVING THOSE COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS.
I PARTICIPATE IN THE CITIZENS ACADEMY WHERE I'M THERE ENGAGING WITH COMMUNITY AND LAW ENFORCEMENT IN THE SAME ROOM.
SO VERY INTENTIONAL ABOUT, UH, HOLDING THOSE CONVERSATIONS AND JUST TRYING TO GET IT TO WHERE WE CAN SEE AND UNDERSTAND AND BE MORE EMPATHETIC TOWARD ONE ANOTHER.
AND I BELIEVE THOSE COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS ALLOW US TO BRIDGE THE DIVIDE BETWEEN THE COMMUNITY AND HELPS US BUILD TRUST IN ADDITION TO ALL THE OTHER THINGS THAT WE DO AS A POLICE DEPARTMENT WITH OUR COMMUNITY POLICING EFFORTS.
MR. MCCLANAHAN, I DON'T HAVE A QUESTION.
MR. CARDWELL, YOU CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD THERE.
UM, SO, UM, I LIKE HEARING YOU MENTION 21ST CENTURY POLICING.
AND I WOULD LIKE TO HEAR WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PILLAR OF 21ST CENTURY POLICING FOR US FOR BATON ROUGE? AND WHY? BUILDING TRUST AND LEGITIMACY.
I THINK THAT IS THE OVERALL SCHEME, BECAUSE IF YOU TACKLE THAT ONE, IT KIND OF TAKES CARE OF THE OTHER PILLARS THAT COME TO FOLLOW.
[01:45:01]
SO THAT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT BECAUSE AS A POLICE DEPARTMENT, WE NEED THE CITIZENS TO PERCEIVE US AS A LEGITIMATE AUTHORITY TO PERCEIVE THAT WE ARE UTILIZING OUR POWERS AND EXECUTING OUR DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES RESPONSIBLY AND RESPECTFULLY AND PROFESSIONALLY.UM, AND IF COMMUNITY MEMBERS PERCEIVE US AS THAT, THEY'RE MORE LIKELY TO WORK WITH US TO REPORT THOSE CRIMES BEFORE THEY HAPPEN.
IF THEY SEE SOMETHING, THEY'RE GONNA SAY SOMETHING TO US, WHICH ULTIMATELY IS GONNA WORK TO REDUCE CRIME IN THE BATON ROUGE COMMUNITY.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOUR LEADERSHIP OR MANAGERIAL STYLE AND WITHIN, UH, DESCRIBING YOUR LEADERSHIP AND MANAGERIAL STYLE? UH, STATE YOUR POSITION ON DISCIPLINE, UH, AND, UH, COMMENDATION.
SO I WOULD LOVE TO CONSIDER, WHEN I CONSIDER MYSELF AN INCLUSIVE LEADER TO WHERE I FEEL ALL STAKEHOLDERS SHOULD HAVE A VOICE AND A SEAT AT THE TABLE.
ALL STAKEHOLDERS SHOULD BE ABLE TO PROVIDE THEIR INPUT.
I LIKE TO LEAD PEOPLE AND MANAGE TASK.
SO I LIKE TO FOCUS ON THE PEOPLE AND DO WHAT I CAN AS A LEADER TO EMPOWER THOSE AROUND ME BY SETTING MY EXPECTATIONS AND MY STANDARDS AND LEADING BY EXAMPLE.
AS FAR AS MANAGING THE TASK, WE'RE GONNA FOCUS ON THOSE THINGS THAT WE ARE TASKED WITH DOING.
HOWEVER, THOSE AROUND ME THAT'S WORKING WITH ME, I WANNA EMPOWER YOU TO BE ABLE TO TAKE ON THAT TASK BY, BASED ON YOU SEEING HOW I WORK AND HOW I FUNCTION.
AND I WANT YOU TO RISE TO THAT LEVEL.
AND IF YOU SURPASS ME, THEN YOU TAKE ME UP WITH YOU AS WELL.
AS FAR AS ACCOMMODATIONS, I BELIEVE ACCOMMODATIONS AND ANY, UH, DEFICIENCIES, I THINK THEY SHOULD BE ADDRESSED IMMEDIATELY.
UM, MEANING IF SOMEONE DOES A GOOD JOB, YOU GIVE THAT ACCOLADE IMMEDIATELY AND AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE, BECAUSE NOT EVERYONE NEEDS THAT, BUT EVERYONE LOVES TO HEAR WHEN THEY'VE DONE A GOOD JOB.
WHEN WE TALK ABOUT MISCONDUCT, THOSE TWO SHOULD BE HANDLED SWIFTLY, UM, AND ADDRESS APPROPRIATELY SO THAT YOU CAN PROVIDE THEM WITH THE MENTORSHIP, TRAINING, AND COUNSELING THAT'S NEEDED SO THAT THEY CAN BE BETTER AND LEARN FROM THOSE MISTAKES.
NOW, ARE THERE SOME THINGS THAT, OKAY, IT'S KIND OF LIKE A BIG DEAL, RIGHT? UM, THERE'S SOME TIMES THAT, YEAH, YOU MESSED UP, YOU MESSED UP REALLY BAD.
HAVE A CONVERSATION ABOUT IT, LEARN FROM IT.
AND IF IT NEEDS TO GO TO A HIGHER LEVEL, THEN IT SHOULD AND IT WILL.
UH, MS. DOUGLAS, THIS IS FROM RECRUITMENT, RETENTION AND PERSONNEL SUPPORT.
UH, HOW CAN WE RECRUIT AND RETAIN MORE QUALIFIED OFFICERS? AND WHAT, HOW WOULD YOU IMPLEMENT A PLAN? OKAY.
I DID FIVE YEARS IN RECRUITING, SO, AND I DEFINITELY HAD A HAND IN CREATING OUR CURRENT RECRUITMENT STRATEGY THAT WE HAVE GOING ON RIGHT NOW.
I DO BELIEVE THAT WE CAN BE MORE EFFECTIVE, UH, IN RECRUITMENT WITH ENGAGEMENT AND PARTICIPATION BY, BY THE CHIEF AND EXECUTIVE STAFF.
I THINK THAT LOOKS GOOD TO SEE THE CHIEF AT A RECRUITING EVENT.
I THINK IT LOOKS GOOD TO SEE THE CHIEF OR THE DEPUTY CHIEF AT A RECRUITING FUNCTION WORKING ALONGSIDE WITH THEIR RECRUITERS.
UM, THAT IS, I WANNA GO WORK THERE BECAUSE LOOK AT THE CHIEF.
I WANT TO GO WORK THERE BECAUSE THE CHIEF IS OUT HERE ON THE FRONT LINE.
AS FAR AS YOU KNOW, WE'VE, WE'VE DONE THE INCENTIVES.
WE'VE, UH, RECEIVED SOME RAISES.
PEOPLE ARE NOT MOTIVATED BY THE MONEY AS MUCH.
THEY'LL LEAVE FOR 25 CENT MORE AN HOUR NOWADAYS.
SO WE NEED TO RESTORE THE CLIMATE AND THE CULTURE IN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT TO WHERE PEOPLE WANNA WORK HERE BECAUSE THEY WANNA BE HERE.
AND IT'S NOT ABOUT THE DOLLAR.
UM, AS FAR AS RETENTION, I BELIEVE PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT AND THE, AND INVESTING IN OUR OFFICERS, WE GOT A LOT OF IMPROVEMENT TO DO THERE.
AND PROVIDING THEM WITH THE SOURCE, THE RESOURCES, THE SUPPORT AND TRAINING THAT THEY NEED TO BECOME THOSE FUTURE LEADERS IN THE DEPARTMENT, PROVIDING THAT INSPIRATIONAL MOTIVATION FOR THEM TO WANT TO STAY HERE.
WHEN I CAME TO BRPD, I CAME BECAUSE I WANTED TO BE A POLICE OFFICER.
I DID NOT KNOW I WAS GONNA GET PAID WHILE I WAS IN THE ACADEMY.
I WAS PRAYING, I DON'T KNOW HOW I'M GONNA PAY THESE BILLS.
AND THAT'S WHAT KEEPS ME HERE, BECAUSE I WANNA BE HERE.
[01:50:01]
AND THAT'S WHAT WE HAVE TO DO.UH, ESTABLISH AN ENVIRONMENT THAT INSPIRES PEOPLE TO WANT TO STAY.
TIM, UH, THOSE LADIES TO YOUR LEFT, THEY CAME WITH YOU.
'CAUSE MYRON AND VALE DIDN'T BRING NOBODY WITH THEM.
BUT I'M GONNA ASK YOU A QUESTION AND YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE A TON OF INSTITUTIONAL KNOWLEDGE AND YOU TALKED ABOUT SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU'VE DONE WITHIN GROUP SETTINGS TO REACH THE COMMUNITY, BUT OFTENTIMES THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS, WITHOUT TRUST WITH POLICE, THEY'RE NOT COMING TO ATTEND YOUR ROOMS, RIGHT? MM-HMM,
SO MY NEXT QUESTION WITH KEEPING THAT PART IN MIND IS FROM COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND IT SAYS, HOW DO YOU PROPOSE TO IMPROVE RELATIONS WITH THE COMMUNITY, ESPECIALLY THE BLACK COMMUNITY, TO IMPROVE TRUST AND OPEN COMMUNICATIONS? UH, WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? THAT WAS A LOT.
HOW DO YOU PROPOSE TO IMPROVE RELATIONS WITHIN COMMUNITY, WITH THE COMMUNITY, ESPECIALLY THE BLACK COMMUNITY, TO IMPROVE TRUST AND OPEN COMMUNICATION? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? OKAY.
THANK YOU FOR REPEATING THAT QUESTION.
SO, WHILE I WAS WORKING IN THE CHIEF'S OFFICE, THE CHIEF'S ADVISORY COUNCIL WAS ESTABLISHED.
UM, SO I WAS IN THOSE ROOMS A LOT.
UM, MATTER OF FACT, I WAS COORDINATING MOST OF THOSE MEETINGS.
UM, SO I HAVE SOME EXPERIENCE THERE WITH BEING IN THOSE ROOMS. HOWEVER, IS THAT ENOUGH? CAN WE DO MORE? UM, I, AS A CHIEF WOULD LIKE TO HAVE MORE FREQUENT MEETINGS BECAUSE, TO, TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE IMMEDIATELY ADDRESSING ISSUES THAT'S GOING ON IN THE COMMUNITY AS IT, YOU KNOW, IN REAL, ALMOST IN REAL TIME.
I THINK THOSE MEETINGS ARE QUARTERLY, MAYBE EVEN BIMONTHLY OR WHEN, AND THEN THERE'S SOME SPECIAL CALL MEETINGS.
I WOULD DEFINITELY WANT TO DO A LITTLE BIT MORE WITH THAT.
I DO ALSO THINK THAT WE CAN DO A BETTER JOB OF WORKING WITH THE YOUTH, UH, MORE MENTORSHIP AND MAYBE EVEN HAVING A JUNIOR ADVISORY COUNCIL BECAUSE, UH, WE NEED A LITTLE BIT MORE PROGRAMMING FOR OUR, FOR OUR YOUTH.
AND, UM, SO YES, THAT IS SOMETHING.
SO THE CHIEF'S ADVISORY COUNCIL, UM, A JUNIOR ADVISORY COUNCIL.
AND ANOTHER THING THAT I ACTUALLY WANNA CONSIDER FROM AN INTERNAL STANDPOINT IS, AND I DON'T EVEN KNOW WHAT THE NAME OF IT WOULD BE, BUT I WOULD WANT AN ADVISORY COUNCIL FROM WITHIN AS WELL, UM, COMPRISED OF PEOPLE ON THE FRONT LINE, UM, ADVISING US OF THE, THE ISSUES THAT THEY'RE FACING, BECAUSE IT'S BEEN 10 YEARS SINCE I'VE BEEN IN PATROL, SO I THINK I KNOW, BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE TO PATROL TO TODAY FOR THEM.
AND WE'RE MAKING DECISIONS ARE BEING MADE THAT AFFECT THOSE ON THE FRONT LINE WITHOUT ANY INPUT FROM THEM, IN MY OPINION.
AND THAT'S WHAT I'M HEARING WHEN I HOST MY TRAINING SESSIONS.
MY QUESTION COMES FROM THE OFFICER WELLNESS AND WELLBEING SECTION, SECTION 10.
HOW WILL YOU ADDRESS THE MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES THAT OFFICERS MAY FACE AND ENSURE THEIR HOLISTIC WELLBEING, PARTICULARLY AFTER DISTRESSING INCIDENTS? SO, BASED ON MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE COLLECTIVE HEALING INITIATIVE, WE HAVE IMPLEMENTED A WELLNESS PROGRAM, BUT IT, IT IS NOT WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE.
AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO INCORPORATE, AND IT COMES AT A, AS A, AT A COST, IS TO POSSIBLY HIRE A PSYCHOLOGIST TO WORK AND BE IN INFUSED AND INGRAINED IN OUR TRAINING ACADEMY PROCESS AND WITHIN OUR DEPARTMENT, SO THAT WE WILL HAVE THAT PERSON INTEGRATED INTO THE SYSTEM AND INTO THE CULTURE TO REMOVE THAT STIGMA OF MENTAL, MENTAL ILLNESS IN THE DEPARTMENT, OR HAVING THOSE ISSUES WITH MENTAL ILLNESS AND MENTAL WELLNESS AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE.
SO THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I THINK THAT WE NEED IN THE DEPARTMENT BASED ON MY EXPERIENCES WITH THE SAN ANTONIO POLICE DEPARTMENT AND HOW THEIR STRUCTURE IS WITH THEIR MENTAL WELLNESS PIECE TO ENSURE THAT OUR OFFICERS ARE GETTING WHAT THEY NEED, ESPECIALLY WHEN THOSE CRITICAL INCIDENTS HAPPEN.
AND THOSE DEBRIEFS ARE DONE BY A LICENSED PROFESSIONAL.
WE DO HAVE A PEER SUPPORT PROGRAM IN PLACE, AND I THINK THAT IT IS A GREAT BENEFIT TO OUR OFFICERS, BUT I DO, WE'RE NOT LICENSED
[01:55:01]
COUNSELORS THOUGH, AND I THINK WE'RE MISSING THAT PIECE IF WE REALLY WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR OFFICERS ARE GETTING WHAT WE NEED.I THINK THAT IS SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA COMPLETE THE PROGRAM.
MS. DOUGLAS, WHICH NEW COMMUNITY POLICING EFFORTS DO YOU FAVOR MOST? WHY AND WHICH DO YOU DISFAVOR AND WHY? WHICH COMMUNITY POLICING EFFORTS? I WHICH COMMUNITY? WHICH NEW COMMUNITY POLICING EFFORTS DO YOU LIKE, AND WHICH ONES DO YOU NOT LIKE AND WHY? WELL, I LIKE ALL OF THEM BECAUSE ALL OF THEM HAS, HAS A SPECIFIC PURPOSE.
UM, BUT I WILL SAY, I WOULD LIKE TO EXPOUND ON SOME OF THE INITIATIVES THAT WE HAVE TO WHERE I COULD PUT MORE ACCOUNTABILITY ON DIVISION COMMANDERS TO DO MORE WITHIN THEIR SEGMENTS OF THE COMMUNITY, MEANING, SO I WOULD LIKE, 'CAUSE RIGHT NOW WE HAVE A COMMUNITY POLICING DIVISION.
IT SHOULD BE A DEPARTMENT WIDE MINDSET, NOT JUST REST ON THE SHOULDERS OF A FEW.
I WOULD LIKE TO KIND OF DECENTRALIZE COMMUNITY POLICING EFFORTS.
SO MUCH SO THAT EACH DISTRICT COMMANDER IS GONNA PROVIDE SOME TYPE OF STRATEGY OR PLAN, COMMUNITY POLICING PLAN TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF NON POLICE ENFORCEMENT ENCOUNTERS WITH THOSE WITHIN THEIR DISTRICTS.
THAT IS SOMETHING THAT I THINK WILL EXPAND OUR DEPTH ALSO AND MAKE A GREATER IMPACT, IMPROVE POLICE, COMMUNI POLICE COMMUNITY RELATIONS IN SUCH THAT IT ULTIMATELY HELPS, INCREASES THAT LEGITIMACY, THAT PERCEIVED LEGITIMACY THAT THE COMMUNITY MEMBERS MAY HAVE.
SO WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE, FIRST DISTRICT WILL HAVE A PLAN, SECOND DISTRICT WILL HAVE A PLAN, AND THEY'RE, THEY'RE GONNA BE RESPONSIBLE FOR CARRYING THAT OUT AND UTILIZING THEIR PERSONNEL WITHIN THEIR DISTRICTS TO DEPLOY THOSE STRATEGIES, OUR PROGRAMS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, MS. DOUGLAS.
YOU'LL NOW HAVE TWO MINUTES FOR A CLOSING STATEMENT.
YOU GOTTA GIVE YOU WHAT I GAVE EVERYBODY ELSE.
I GAVE YOU TWO MINUTES IN 10 SECONDS.
'CAUSE MR. BALL AND MR. DANIEL WENT OVER BY 10 SECONDS.
I TRIED TO FOLLOW THE RULES, BUT, OKAY.
SO, AS A LITTLE GIRL, MY PERCEPTION, MY REALITY WAS, WAS DAILY CHAOS RESULTING IN FREQUENT POLICE VISITS.
IT WAS THE POLICE WHO MADE THE CHAOS GO AWAY AND BROUGHT PEACE TO MY HOME.
I BECAME A POLICE OFFICER BECAUSE I WANTED TO PROVIDE OTHERS WITH THE SAME SENSE OF SAFETY AND SECURITY THAT WAS PROVIDED TO ME AS A CHILD.
I NEVER FORGOT MY WHY, AND THAT IT DRIVES ME DAY IN AND DAY OUT TO SHOW UP AND SHOW OUT ALL THAT I HAVE DONE AND ALL THAT I DO IS DONE IN EXCELLENCE, IN ALIGNMENT WITH THE MISSION AND VISION OF THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
I'VE SPENT YEARS PREPARING MYSELF FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO LEAD AND POSITIVELY IMPACT THIS DEPARTMENT AND THIS COMMUNITY.
I BELIEVE THIS POSITION IS RIGHT FOR ME RIGHT NOW.
FROM THE VANTAGE POINT OF WHERE I STAND IN THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT, I AM NOT ABLE TO MAKE THE BIGGEST IMPACT NECESSARY FOR US TO THRIVE.
I AM A VISIONARY WHO WILL CONTINUE THE WORK OF NOT ONLY BRIDGING THE DIVIDE BETWEEN THE POLICE AND THE COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO BRIDGING THE DIVIDE BETWEEN THE FRONT FRONTLINE AND EXECUTIVE STAFF.
ALL STAKEHOLDERS MATTER AND ALL SHOULD HAVE A VOICE.
AND FOR 19 YEARS, I'VE BEEN CONSISTENT IN PERFORMING WELL, CONSISTENT WITH FAIRNESS, CONSISTENT WITH RIGHTEOUS DECISION MAKING, CONSISTENT WITH IMPROVING THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND I'VE BEEN CONSISTENT WITH SERVICE.
I AM BOUGHT IN AND ACTIVELY ENGAGED IN DEPLOYING THE 21ST CENTURY POLICING PRINCIPLES AND WILL CONTINUE TO BUILD ON THE FOUNDATION AND WE'LL TAKE IT TO HIGHER HEIGHTS.
THIS COMMU COMMUNITY NEEDS A LEADER WHO IS COMMITTED TO THE WORK, COMMITTED TO THE PEOPLE, COMMITTED TO SERVING, AND COMMITTED TO THE MISSION.
BECAUSE WE CANNOT AFFORD ANYTHING LESS THAN THAT.
IT IS NOT ABOUT THE TITLE OR THE POWER FOR ME, IT'S ABOUT THE PEOPLE FEELING SAFE INSIDE THE DEPARTMENT AND FEELING SAFE OUTSIDE OF THE DEPARTMENT.
THANK YOU VERY MUCH MR. SINCERELY.
WE HAVE TWO MORE CANDIDATES FOR THE EVENING.
NEXT WE WILL HEAR FROM KAY HINES.
[02:00:09]
GOT THEI'M LAMONT COLE, CHAIRMAN OF THE CHIEF OF POLICE INTERVIEW COMMITTEE.
I'M GONNA TELL YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT HOW THE PROCESS IS GOING TO WORK.
YOU'LL HAVE THREE MINUTES TO MAKE AN OPENING STATEMENT, AND THEN EACH ONE OF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS WILL ASK TWO QUESTIONS FROM A LIST OF TWO CATEGORIES.
UH, WE CAN ASK UP TO TWO QUESTIONS, UH, SHOULD WE CHOOSE? UH, WE MAY NOT ASK TWO, BUT WE CAN ASK TWO.
AND YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO RESPOND TO EACH QUESTION.
AND THEN YOU'LL HAVE A TWO MINUTE, UH, TWO MINUTES TO MAKE A CLOSING REMARKS.
YOU READY? AND LET US KNOW WHEN YOU'RE READY.
YOU GOT THREE MINUTES TO MAKE AN OPENING STATEMENT ON YOU.
AND, UH, FIRST OF ALL, I APOLOGIZE.
I LOST MY VOICE OVER THE WEEKEND.
UM, SO WE WILL GET THROUGH THIS THE BEST WE CAN.
UH, BUT I WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO COME HERE AND, UH, AND BE INTERVIEWED, UH, THIS EVENING.
UM, I ALSO WANT TO THANK YOU ALL FOR TAKING THE TIME OUTTA YOUR SCHEDULES TO CONDUCT THESE INTERVIEWS AND TO BE ON THIS BOARD.
I KNOW HOW IMPORTANT IT IS TO THE CITY AND TO ALL THE DEPARTMENT THAT THE RIGHT CANDIDATE BE CHOSEN.
AND I KNOW THAT'S SOMETHING THAT Y'ALL ARE TAKING SERIOUS AND, UH, NOT TAKING LIGHTLY.
UM, I WORK WITH THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT FOR 30 YEARS NOW.
I WAS TWO YEARS ON AS A RESERVE IN 93 TO 95.
AND IN 95 I BEGAN MY CAREER, UM, AS A FULL-TIME LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER WITH THE CITY.
THROUGHOUT MY CAREER, I HAVE ALWAYS PRIDED MYSELF, UM, WITH THE INTEGRITY THAT I HAVE, WITH THE, UH, HONOR THAT I SERVE THE CITY WITH.
AND THE FACT THAT I HAVE BEEN FAIR IN EVERYONE THAT I'VE DEALT WITH, BOTH ON THE CRIMINAL SIDE AND ON, UM, INCIDENTS THAT DON'T INVOLVE CRIMINAL ACTIVITY WHERE WE'VE HAD CONTACT WITH THE PUBLIC.
I THINK THAT THAT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING THAT AN OFFICER CAN DO, IS REALIZE THAT WE WORK FOR THE PUBLIC AND THAT OUR INTEGRITY IS OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE.
THAT'S WHAT I DEMAND OUT OF THE OFFICERS THAT I SUPERVISE NOW, AND THAT I WILL SUPERVISE AS THE CHIEF OF POLICE.
I'M TRYING TO FIND THE QUESTION.
SO, MR. RYANS, THIS IS FROM CATEGORY EIGHT, DATA TECHNOLOGY AND TRANSPARENCY.
SO TRYING TO MAKE SURE I GET IT RIGHT FROM YOUR RESUME, UH, I SEE THAT YOU WORKED FOR THE, OR WORKED WITH THE GUN, THE CRIME GUN INTELLIGENCE CENTER, AND SEEING THAT, I WANTED TO ASK YOU THE QUESTION HERE FROM EIGHT ABOUT ARE THERE ANY NASCENT PRACTICES OR TECHNOLOGIES THAT YOU BELIEVE COULD HELP VRPD ACHIEVE ITS MISSION OF PROTECTING AND SERVING THE PUBLIC? BUT ATTACHED TO THAT, UH, I WONDER IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR DOUBTS ABOUT SOME OF THOSE PRACTICES.
FOR EXAMPLE, WE SAW IN, UH, NEW ORLEANS ISSUES WITH CAMERAS, YARDS, PERSONAL PRIVACY.
SO I'M WONDERING YOUR THOUGHTS ON THAT.
SO, SINCE BEING ASSIGNED TO THE CRIME GUN INTELLIGENCE CENTER, UM, I HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE THERE FOR THE INCEPTION OF THAT UNIT, UH, WHICH WAS LED BY OUR ATF UH, COUNTERPARTS.
THERE'S A LOT OF TECHNOLOGY OUT THERE THAT WE CURRENTLY USE, SUCH AS SHOT SPOTTER, UH,
UM, THERE'S SOME NEW TECHNOLOGY, UH, RELATED TO DNA PROCESSING OF SHELL CASINGS.
WE'RE, WE'RE ABLE TO, UM, GET A LOT BETTER RESULTS THAN WE HAVE IN THE PAST.
AS FAR AS TECHNOLOGY GOES, I KNOW THAT IT'S A VERY TOUCHY SUBJECT WHENEVER YOU START LOOKING AT CAMERAS, SURVEILLANCE CAMERAS IN AREAS OF INCIDENTS WHERE WE'VE, WE'VE, UH, WE'VE MAYBE HAD AN INCIDENT.
I THINK THAT AS LONG AS WE STICK WITH ABIDING BY THE FOURTH AMENDMENT AND USE THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM IN ORDER TO OBTAIN SEARCH WARRANTS FOR THAT INFORMATION, UM, I I THINK THAT WE WILL BE OKAY.
AND I'M PERMIT TO ASK A FOLLOW UP.
IS THAT, SO WITH THAT ONE, UH, WOULD YOU IMPLEMENT POLICIES TO ENSURE THAT THE PUBLIC COULD BE COMPLETELY ASSURED OF THAT IN THE SENSE OF, AS SHOWING A GUARANTEE OF THAT LIKE, WE'RE NOT ONLY GOING, WE'RE REQUIRING THIS SORT OF NEUTRAL DECISION MAKER'S ROLE?
[02:05:02]
YEAH, BUT I THINK MORE THAN A POLICY.I MEAN, I WOULDN'T HAVE A PROBLEM PUTTING SOMETHING LIKE THAT INTO POLICY, BUT I THINK THAT WE HAVE TO ABIDE BY THE CONSTITUTION THAT WE SWEAR TO UPHOLD.
AND I THINK THAT IF, IF WE DO THAT, ESPECIALLY IN THE SITUATIONS OF, UH, FOURTH AMENDMENT ISSUES THAT WE SHOULDN'T, THAT SHOULDN'T BE SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD NECESSARILY HAVE TO PUT INTO POLICY.
BUT I WOULD'VE NO PROBLEM DOING THAT.
BUT WE, WE SWEAR TO UPHOLD THE CONSTITUTION TO THE UNITED STATES.
AND I THINK THAT THAT IS A SITUATION, ESPECIALLY ANYTHING THAT REQUIRES A, UM, A SEARCH WARRANT FROM A JUDGE OR A MAGISTRATE, UM, IS VERY CLEAR THAT, THAT THIS IS THE PO, THIS IS THE PROCEDURE THAT WE HAVE TO FOLLOW TO ABIDE BY THE LAW.
BUT, BUT AS FAR AS PUTTING IN A POLICY, I WOULD'VE ABSOLUTELY NO PROBLEM WITH THAT.
I THINK THAT THAT WOULD PROBABLY FALL MORE IN THE PROCEDURE CATEGORY.
MR. HY YOUR TIME ON THAT QUESTION.
MY QUESTION WILL BE COMING FROM COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, HOW CAN THE CHIEF BUILD HEALTHY COMMUNICATION WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS, NOT JUST THE COMMUNITY LEADERS? I AM WITH YOU 100%
I'M SO GLAD YOU ASKED THAT QUESTION.
UM, I THINK IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE THAT ARE LIVING IN THE AREAS THAT WE ARE PROTECTING.
I THINK IT'S GREAT THAT THE LEADERS OF THOSE COMMUNITIES CAN COME FORWARD WITH CONCERNS, BUT I THINK IT'S MORE IMPORTANT TO TALK TO MS. LILY THAT LIVES ON THE STREET CORNER TO FIND OUT WHAT SHE WANTS.
AND IT'S REALLY FUNNY YOU SAY THAT BECAUSE, UM, WHEN I, WHEN I FIRST GOT INTO THE CRIME GUN INTELLIGENCE CENTER, WE RAN A RAPID RESPONSE TEAM.
AND WHAT THAT WAS, WE HAD FOUR DETECTIVES, I'M GONNA GO OVER AGAIN.
WE HAD FOUR DETECTIVES THAT WORKED FIVE HOURS, THREE NIGHTS A WEEK, AND THEY WENT OUT TO THE AREAS WHERE WE WERE LIKELY TO HAVE GUN VIOLENCE.
AND THEY WERE THE FIRST ONES TO RESPOND.
WELL, BEFORE WE GOT ANYTHING, WE WOULD GO TO THESE AREAS AND WE WOULD KNOCK ON DOORS AND TALK TO PEOPLE.
THE BIGGEST COMPLAINT WE GOT WAS, WHERE ARE Y'ALL? WHY AREN'T YOUR OFFICERS IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD? I WANT TO SEE POLICE OFFICERS OUT HERE.
AND I AGREE WITH YOU A HUNDRED PERCENT THAT SOMETIMES THE MESSAGE FROM THE PUBLIC IS NOT NECESSARILY THE SAME MESSAGE THAT REACHES OUR EARS.
AND IT'S IMPORTANT TO LISTEN TO THEM.
HOW ARE YOU, UH, AS WE EMBARK ON THIS NEW SEASON, PLEASE SHARE ANY THOUGHTS YOU HAVE ABOUT THE OVERALL DIRECTION AND OUTLOOK FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
SO OVERALL, I THINK THAT WE NEED TO CONTINUE THE WORK THAT HAS BEEN DONE TO THIS POINT, UM, FOR PUBLIC, NOT PUBLIC PERCEPTION, BUT PUBLIC TRUST.
BUT I THINK THAT WE ALSO NEED TO START INCORPORATING THE, THE TRUST AND FAITH OF OUR OFFICERS AND OUR ADMINISTRATION.
I THINK THAT ONE IS JUST AS IMPORTANT AS THE OTHER.
IF YOU TAKE CARE OF OUR OFFICERS, WE WILL TAKE CARE OF OUR RESIDENTS AND OUR PUBLIC.
AND I THINK THAT THAT IS THE TWO MOST IMPORTANT THINGS THAT WE SHOULD STRIVE FOR IN ORDER TO COME TOGETHER AS A COMMUNITY AND LAW ENFORCEMENT ENTITY.
SOMETIMES WE'LL HAVE TO AGREE TO DISAGREE ON MATTERS, BUT I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE HAVE THOSE OPEN CONVERSATIONS.
UM, I AM, UH, WITH TOGETHER BATON ROUGE AND ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WE, UH, BELIEVE STRONGLY IN IS, UH, INSTITUTING CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT.
UM, SO I'M INTERESTED TO KNOW, UM, IF YOU WERE A POLICE CHIEF, WOULD YOU BE OPEN TO USING CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT AND HOW MIGHT YOU INCORPORATE THAT IN YOUR ADMINISTRATION? SO, AS I STATED BEFORE, IF WE HAVEN'T LEARNED ANYTHING IN THE PAST SIX YEARS, SEVEN YEARS SINCE 2016, THE PUBLIC RUNS AND HAS A HUGE SAY IN HOW WE POLICE.
I THINK THAT THAT'S BEEN VERY CLEAR OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS.
AND IF WE DON'T LISTEN TO 'EM, WE DON'T OPEN THOSE LINES OF COMMUNICATION AND REALLY LISTEN TO 'EM.
I THINK THAT WE'RE MISSING A HUGE POINT WHEN WE TALK ABOUT OVERSIGHT.
I WOULD BE VERY INTERESTED TO SEE WHAT YOU MEAN BY THAT.
UM, I THINK THAT CONSTANT COMMUNICATION BETWEEN MYSELF AS THE CHIEF AND MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT.
TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK WE'RE DOING RIGHT.
TELL ME WHAT YOU THINK WE'RE DOING WRONG.
I THINK HAVING CIVILIANS HAVE INPUT ON THE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES THAT WE IMPLEMENT AND FOLLOW AND CORRECTIONS TO THE ONES THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE IS A GREAT IDEA.
THEY HAVE TO, THE PUBLIC HAS TO AGREE
[02:10:01]
WITH THE WAY WE DO THINGS.SO I, I WOULD BE VERY INTERESTED TO FIND OUT EXACTLY WHAT YOUR FORESIGHT IS, UH, IN AN ENDEAVOR LIKE THAT.
WE GOTTA FIGURE SOMETHING OUT.
VIOLENT CRIME IS BAD IN BATON ROUGE AND WE NEED TO FIX IT.
THE POSITION OF CHIEF, UH, IS THE CEO OF A MULTIMILLION DOLLAR ORGANIZATION, WHICH OVERSEES HUNDREDS OF STAFF AND MILLIONS OF TAX DOLLARS AND MANAGED THOUSANDS OF PHYSICAL RESOURCES.
WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED TO SERVE AT THIS LEVEL? PLEASE PROVIDE SPECIFIC DETAILS.
SO SPECIFICALLY, I'VE BEEN IN CHARGE OF PUTTING TOGETHER BUDGETS FOR THE VARIOUS DIVISIONS THAT I'VE BEEN A SUPERVISOR FOR.
NOW, I KNOW THAT'S NOT ON THE SCALE OF AN ENTIRE POLICE DEPARTMENT, BUT ONE THING MY DAD TAUGHT ME GROWING UP WAS HOW TO HANDLE MONEY.
AND FROM THE TIME I WAS LITTLE, IF WE, IF WE DID A CHORE, IT WENT IN A BOOK AND WE LEARNED TO MANAGE MONEY, I'VE GROWN UP WITH A, A, A HEALTHY RESPECT FOR MONEY MANAGEMENT.
WILL THERE BE THINGS THAT I NEED TO LEARN? ABSOLUTELY.
DO I KNOW ANY EVERYTHING ABOUT RUNNING A MULTIMILLION DOLLAR BUSINESS? I DO NOT, BUT I PROMISE YOU I'LL LEARN.
UM, THIS COMES FROM THE PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP CATEGORY.
UH, BATON ROUGE IS A MULTICULTURAL COMMUNITY WITH A THRIVING REFUGEE AND IMMIGRANTS POPULATION.
PLEASE DETAIL WHAT, IF ANY, EXPERIENCE YOU HAVE IN EFFECTIVELY PROVIDING PUBLIC SAFETY PROGRAMS IN PLACE, UH, PARTNERING WITH THESE KINDS OF COMMUNITIES.
SO WHEN I WORKED IN THE ARMED ROBBERY DIVISION SPECIFICALLY, WE, WE, WE OBVIOUSLY HAVE A VERY, A GROWING POPULATION OF HISPANIC, UH, PERSONS AND A LOT THAT DON'T SPEAK ENGLISH.
ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WILL DEFINITELY DO ACTIVELY IS START LOOKING TO RECRUIT FROM THAT COMMUNITY.
WE HAVE SEVERAL OFFICERS WHO ARE VERY FLUENT IN SPANISH.
UM, ARTHUR MUNOZ WHO WORKED HERE, WHO I CAME THROUGH THE ACADEMY WITH, WAS A, WAS A LIAISON BETWEEN, UM, THE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND THE HISPANIC COMMUNITY.
HE WENT ON THEIR RADIO STATION ON A REGULAR BASIS.
WE'RE SEEING THAT COMMUNITY VICTIMIZED AND THEY'RE AFRAID TO COME FORWARD AND TALKED TO US.
THERE WERE MANY TIMES WHERE WE WENT THROUGH THE HISPANIC OFFICERS THAT WE HAVE ON OUR DEPARTMENT IN ORDER TO LAY LIAISON BETWEEN US AND THE COMMUNITY TO TRY TO GET THOSE FOLKS TO COME FORWARD.
WE'RE NOT, WE'RE NOT ASKING YOU STATUS.
WE ARE WORRIED ABOUT WHAT'S GOING ON IN YOUR COMMUNITY.
SO I THINK THAT RECRUITMENT IN THAT COMMUNITY IS, SHOULD BE A TOP PRIORITY.
UM, I ALSO HAPPENED TO TALK TO ARTHUR THIS WEEKEND.
I SAID, LOOK, IF THEY MAKE ME CHIEF, YOU'RE COMING BACK AS MY LIAISON HISPANIC COMMUNITY.
AND HE SAID, OH, WELL, HE DIDN'T GIMME A POSITIVE, UH, UH, UH, ANSWER, BUT HE IS ONE OF OUR RESERVE OFFICERS NOW, SO HE'LL HAVE TO
MR. COLLIN, UH, THANK YOU MR. MAYOR.
I, I DON'T THINK ARTHUR COMING BACK.
MR. HINES, UM, I'M GONNA ASK YOU A QUESTION FROM THE PERSONAL APPROACH OF LEADERSHIP SECTION.
AND THIS IS A YES SIR QUESTION THAT WAS ACTUALLY SUBMITTED BY ANOTHER CANDIDATE.
AS WE EMBARK ON THIS NEW SEASON, PLEASE SHARE ANY THOUGHTS YOU HAVE ABOUT THE OVERALL DIRECTION AND OUTLOOK FOR THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
WELL, I THINK IT'D BE VERY SIMILAR TO MR. MCCLANAHAN'S QUESTION THAT I ANSWERED.
UM, IT'S VERY IMPORTANT, LEMME SEE IF I CAN, SINCE I USED ALL MY TIME ON THAT LAST ONE.
LEMME SEE IF I CAN CHANGE IT UP A LITTLE BIT.
UM, LOOK, TO ME, IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT WE LISTEN TO THE PUBLIC, THAT WE HAVE THOSE COMMUNICATIONS, THAT WE UNDERSTAND WHAT THEY EXPECT.
AT THE SAME TIME, I NEED TO DO THE SAME THING FOR MY DEPARTMENT.
I NEED TO TALK TO THE OFFICERS.
I NEED TO SEE WHAT THEIR CONCERNS ARE BECAUSE LIKE I SAID, THE BIGGEST COMPLAINT THAT WE HAD FROM THE PUBLIC IS, WHERE ARE YOUR OFFICERS? WHY ARE YOU NOT OUT HERE PATROLLING MY STREETS? WE DON'T SEE ANYBODY ANYMORE.
THAT WAS THE NUMBER ONE COMPLAINT THAT I GOT.
TALKING ONE-ON-ONE WITH OUR RESIDENTS.
IF I CAN BUILD THE TRUST AND THE, THE, THE RESPECT OF MY DEPARTMENT, THEY WILL GO OUT AND TAKE CARE OF THE PUBLIC.
NOW, WE CAN'T JUST CUT 'EM LOOSE AND SAY, HEY, GO OUT THERE AND, AND, AND PROACTIVELY PATROL, BECAUSE THAT'S A BAD
[02:15:01]
WORD THESE DAYS, RIGHT? THAT, THAT KIND OF HAS SOME CONNOTATIONS THAT ARE TOUGH.BUT WE NEED TO TRAIN OUR OFFICERS TO DO IT THE RIGHT WAY.
OUR BIGGEST PROBLEM AS OFFICERS, A LOT OF TIMES IS THE WAY WE SPEAK TO PEOPLE.
AND A LOT OF TIMES THAT IS JUST PERSONALITY DIFFERENCES, BUT YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO TURN THAT ON AND OFF.
I HAVE PRIDED MYSELF IN THE WAY THAT I TALK TO PEOPLE, THE WAY THAT I, UH, UH, HANDLE INDIVIDUALS THAT I'VE EITHER HAD TO ARREST OR THAT I'M JUST TAKING A REPORT FROM.
UM, BUT I THINK THAT THAT'S VERY IMPORTANT.
I WANNA SEE OUR OFFICERS RESPECT THE PUBLIC, AND I WANT SEE THEM.
I DON'T WANT THE PUBLIC JUST TO TRUST ME.
I WANT 'EM TO TRUST EVERY SINGLE MEMBER OF THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
MY QUESTION COMES FROM STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES.
LOOKING TO THE FUTURE OF BRPD, WHAT DO YOU BELIEVE IS THE DEPARTMENT'S GREATEST DIFFICULTY THAT IS, WILL ENCOUNTER? WHAT AREA DO YOU BELIEVE SHOWS PROMISE OR HAS THE GREATEST POTENTIAL? SO I THINK WITH THE DEVELOPMENTS OVER THE YEARS OF, UM, TECHNOLOGY, I THINK THAT THE BIGGEST ADVANTAGE AND THE BIGGEST, UM, CHALLENGE THAT WE'RE GONNA HAVE IS HOW TO PROPERLY USE THAT TECHNOLOGY.
LIKE MR. BRINA ASKED EARLIER AND DISCUSSED EARLIER.
UM, THERE'S A LOT OF, YOU KNOW, THE USE OF DRONES.
A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THE USE OF DRONES, THE USE OF SHOT SPOTTER, UH, WHICH I WAS VERY ACTIVE IN WHEN I WAS IN THE CRIME GUN INTELLIGENCE CENTER.
THE USE OF SHOT SPOTTER CAME INTO QUESTION ACROSS THE COUNTRY.
PEOPLE WERE, WERE BELIEVING THAT, THAT, THAT THIS WAS A TECHNOLOGY THAT MAYBE BROUGHT OFFICERS TO A SCENE WHEN THEY WEREN'T NEEDED IN THE FIRST PLACE.
I THINK THAT WE NEED TO LOOK AT THE TECHNOLOGY THAT'S OUT THERE, THAT WE NEED TO FIND OUT HOW WE CAN USE IT TO BEST PROTECT THE CITY.
AND THEN HOW WE CAN DO THAT LEGALLY UNDER THE LEGAL GUIDELINES, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE NOT VIOLATING ANY CONSTITUTIONAL ISSUES.
MR. HINES, DESCRIBE A SITUATION WHERE YOU MADE A DECISION, UH, THAT LED TO A NEGATIVE OUTCOME, AND HOW DID YOU HANDLE THIS FEEDBACK FROM YOUR SUPERVISOR? OKAY, LEMME GET ANOTHER DRINK ON THIS ONE.
OH, UM,
THE BURGLARY SUSPECT ACTUALLY CAME FROM BAKER.
WELL, BEING A YOUNG OFFICER, IT WAS EXCITING.
I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF A CAR CHASE.
WE'RE ON THE INTERSTATE, UM, CHASING A RIDER PICKUP TRUCK, I MEAN A RIDER, UH, A ROLL-UP TRUCK.
AND I SWITCHED OVER TO ANOTHER DISPATCH CHANNEL.
MY LIEUTENANT TOLD US TO CALL OFF THE CHASE.
WELL, I WAS ON A DIFFERENT CHANNEL.
I SWITCHED OVER TO THE CHANNEL THAT INITIATED THE PURSUIT.
WE WENT ALL THE WAY TO LAFAYETTE
DURING THE CHASE, UM, ANOTHER JURISDICTION FIRED SHOTS AT THE VEHICLE AND ACTUALLY STRUCK ONE OF THE OCCUPANTS.
UM, WHICH MY LIEUTENANT HAD THE FORESIGHT TO PULL US OUT OF BEFORE IT HAPPENED.
BUT I WAS ON A DIFFERENT FREQUENCY.
SO WHEN I GOT BACK TO THE OFFICE, UH, WHICH IT WAS FUNNY 'CAUSE THE NEWS EVEN TALKED ABOUT HOW WE HAD THE PHONE IN BECAUSE OUR RADIOS DIDN'T GO THAT FAR, WHICH WAS TRUE.
SORRY, THIS WAS 1996, UH, WHEN I GOT BACK TO THE PRECINCT AND MY LIEUTENANT AND I HAD A GREAT RELATIONSHIP AND HE WAS MAD, MAD, MAD.
AND HE DIDN'T WANT TO HEAR THAT I SWITCHED CHANNELS.
HE DIDN'T WANT TO HEAR ANY EXCUSES.
AND, UH, BY THE END OF IT, WE TALKED IT OUT AND I UNDERSTOOD WHAT HE WAS TR CONVEYING TO ME BECAUSE HE WAS MAD.
AND, UH, HE UNDERSTOOD THAT I WASN'T GONNA DO THAT AGAIN.
THAT'S ALL HE NEEDED TO UNDERSTAND.
BUT, UH, THAT WAS, THAT WAS PROBABLY THE ONE THAT STANDS OUT IN MY HEAD THE MOST.
SO, MS. RYANS, YOU'VE TALKED, UH, A GOOD BIT ABOUT ALL YOUR EXPERIENCE AND YOU HAVE A LOT ON YOUR RESUME, INCLUDING, UH, SOME OF THE DIVISIONS THAT WE HAVE RECENTLY SEEN DIFFICULTIES WITH.
BUT IN LIGHT OF YOUR EXPERIENCE WITH, SAY, NARCOTICS, BUT ALSO BEING IN LEADERSHIP IN THESE PAST FEW YEARS, UH, HOW HAVE YOU OR YOUR DIVISION RESPONDED TO THOSE DIFFICULTIES AND SCANDALS? BRAVE CAVE RECENTLY, NARCOTICS DIVISION, CANINE UNITS.
DID Y'ALL ADOPT, SUGGEST OR IMPLEMENT ANY NEW POLICIES? AND IF SO, WHAT WAS THEIR RESULT? WELL, UM,
[02:20:01]
SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE DID DISCUSS IS FOR HAVING BACKUPS FOR OUR BACKUPS WHENEVER WE DO INTERVIEWS, UM, THAT I DON'T EVER WANT.UH, SO RIGHT NOW I'M THE VIOLENT CRIME UNIT COMMANDER.
SO I'M OVER HOMICIDE MAJOR ASSAULTS, UH, SPECIAL VICTIMS UNIT, UM, ARMED ROBBERY, AND OUR CRIME GUN INTELLIGENCE CENTER.
UM, I AM A BIG PROPONENT OF MAKING SURE YOUR VIDEO'S ON AND MAKING SURE NEVER TO MUTE THAT MIC.
IF YOU WANT TO TALK TO YOUR FRIEND ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING THIS WEEKEND, SAVE IT FOR JUST A MINUTE AND MAKE SURE THAT EVERY SINGLE BIT OF THAT CONTACT IS ON VIDEO AND AUDIO.
I'VE ALSO HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO WORK WITH THE DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND THE US ATTORNEY'S OFFICE IN FOLLOWING UP AND, AND PREVIEWING CASES FROM OUR UNIFORM PATROL UNITS, UH, THAT ARE GONNA GO BEFORE THEIR COURTS.
AND THE BIGGEST PET PEEVE THAT I HAVE AND THAT THEY HAVE AS WELL, IS WHEN THAT CAMERA GETS MUTED.
SO, IN MY OPINION, WITH THE TECHNOLOGY WE HAVE TODAY, THERE'S NO REASON TO EVER NOT HAVE SOMETHING ON AUDIO AND VIDEO.
AND FOR A BRIEF FOLLOW UP TO THAT, WHAT IS YOUR VIEW ON HOW OFFICERS SHOULD BE DISCIPLINED FOR THAT DETERMINING MAYBE BAD FAITH VERSUS, UH, INNOCUOUS DECISION? SO, I
EVERY TIME SOMETHING HITS THE NEWS FROM AROUND THE COUNTRY, IT BREAKS MY HEART AND IT HURTS BECAUSE IT'S EMBARRASSING TO PUT THIS UNIFORM ON AND TO HAVE THAT STIGMA FLOATING AROUND AND PEOPLE LOOKING AT YOU WONDERING IF THAT'S YOU, THAT'S A VERY DIFFICULT POSITION TO BE IN.
IF YOU COMMIT A CRIMINAL ACT, YOU SHOULD BE ARRESTED TO GO TO JAIL.
IF YOU COMMIT A VIOLATION OF POLICY AND WE CAN LEARN FROM IT, WE HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN FROM IT AND MAKE YOU A BETTER OFFICER.
IF A COMPLAINT COMES IN AND IT IS DETERMINED THAT YOU DID NO WRONG, YOU SHOULD NOT BE DISCIPLINED.
AND I THINK IT'S JUST AS SIMPLE AS THAT.
WHAT WOULD, UH, BE YOUR LEGACY WHEN YOU RETIRE? FAIRNESS, HONESTY, OPENNESS, AND HOPEFULLY A WAY LOWER CRIME RATE.
MR. MCCLENNEY, WHAT ARE THE THREE PRIMARY, THIS COMING FROM THE ROLE OF, OF THE POLICE? WHAT ARE THE THREE PRIMARY OR THE THREE MOST IMPORTANT ROLES OF A CHIEF OF POLICE, PARTICULARLY IN A JURISDICTION LIKE BATON ROUGE? SO I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT ROLES ARE ONE, CLARITY.
UM, MAKING SURE THAT WE'RE PUTTING THE PROPER INFORMATION OUT, NOT PUTTING INFORMATION OUT THAT'S GONNA JEOPARDIZE CASES, BUT MAKING SURE THE PUBLIC STAYS INFORMED ON CASES THAT ARE CAUSE FOR CONCERN.
ONE OF THE BIG WAYS THAT I WOULD LIKE TO DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT ALONG THOSE LINES IS THROUGH OUR PIO OFFICERS.
WE HAVE SOME GREAT OFFICERS AS Y'ALL WELL KNOW, IN OUR PIO DIVISION, AND THERE'S NO REASON THAT THEY CAN'T, UH, GET ON SOCIAL MEDIA AND PUT MORE STUFF OUT.
I WOULD REALLY LIKE TO SEE THAT.
I WOULD LIKE TO SEE THEM HAVING A, UM, THEIR OWN CHANNEL WHERE THEY GIVE DAILY UPDATES ON INFORMATION, UH, ON CASES THAT, THAT, UH, REQUIRE PUBLIC AWARENESS.
UM, WHAT WAS THE REST OF THE QUESTION? I'M SORRY.
YOU WANTED THREE RIGHT?
AND YOU SAID ONE IS CLARITY, BUT YES, I'M WAITING ON THE OTHER.
I THINK, I THINK THE OTHER IS, UM, ACCOUNTABILITY.
ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ME TO THE PUBLIC AND TO, UM, THE MAYOR AND AS WELL AS THE ACCOUNTABILITY OF MY OFFICERS TO THEIR SUPERVISORS AND ULTIMATELY TO ME.
UM, AND I THINK THE THIRD IS FIGHTING CRIME.
BEING A POLICE OFFICER HAS IS A VERY SIMPLE CONCEPT.
SOMEBODY BREAKS THE LAW, WE ARREST THEM.
THE APPLICATION IS THE DIFFICULT PART.
IT IS, THAT IS A VERY TOUGH, BECAUSE WHAT DOES A CRIMINAL LOOK LIKE? WE DON'T KNOW.
SO I THINK THAT THROUGH TRAINING AND THROUGH PROPER EXPERIENCE TRAINING, BOTH IN THE ACADEMY AND ON THE STREET, AND CONTINUE TRAINING AFTER THAT, WE WILL HAVE A BETTER CHANCE OF ACCOMPLISHING THAT.
UM, WHAT STRATEGY WOULD YOU USE TO DETERMINE AND FULFILL STAFFING NEEDS? UM, I KNOW RECENTLY WE'VE HAD EFFICIENCY, UH,
[02:25:01]
SO THERE MAY HAVE BEEN CUTS.WE ALSO KNOW THAT THERE ARE, WE'RE JUST DOWN, UH, UH, A LARGE NUMBER OF OFFICERS.
SO HOW WOULD YOU FIGURE OUT WHAT THE NEEDS ARE? I, I HAVE TO TELL THE SUPERVISOR UNDER ME THAT EVERY DAY WHEN THEY ASKED FOR MORE PEOPLE, I THINK, UH, BRIAN WENT EARLIER, HE IS MY HOMICIDE COMMANDER, AND HE ASKED ME FOR MORE PEOPLE ON A REGULAR BASIS.
I THINK THAT WE HAVE TO DO EVERYTHING WE CAN TO MAKE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT ATTRACTIVE TO OTHER PEOPLE THAT ARE WANTING TO GET INTO LAW ENFORCEMENT.
THERE'S A CALLING TO DO THIS JOB.
I DON'T THINK ANYBODY CAN JUST GO APPLY AND COME OUT AND BE A POLICE OFFICER.
I THINK YOU, IT IS KIND OF LIKE A PASTOR.
I THINK YOU, THERE'S A CALLING THAT YOU HAVE TO, YOU HAVE TO ADHERE TO, BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO COME HERE.
WE NEED TO MAKE IT A MORE ATTRACTIVE, WHETHER IT BE THROUGH PAY RAISES, THROUGH BENEFITS, THROUGH OUR REPUTATION.
WE HAVE TO MAKE IT MORE ATTRACTIVE FOR PEOPLE TO WANT TO COME HERE.
WHEN I FIRST CAME ON THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT, THIS WAS THE DEPARTMENT TO BE ON, NO OFFENSE TO ANY OF THE OTHER, THE, UH, UH, LOCAL AND STATE, UH, DEPARTMENTS IN OUR AREA, BUT BRPD IS WHERE EVERYBODY WANTED TO COME.
AND I WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT GET TO THAT AGAIN.
UM, BUT I THINK ONE IS OUR TRAINING NEEDS TO BE TOP NOTCH.
I THINK OUR REPUTATION NEEDS TO BE IMPROVED, AND I THINK THAT OUR PAY NEEDS TO BE INCREASED TO MAKE US COMPETITIVE.
I HAVE TO GIBSON, HOW WOULD YOU INCORPORATE DEESCALATION TACTICS INTO STANDARD POLICE PROCEDURE? I THINK WE DO THAT THROUGH TRAINING.
I THINK WE DO THAT THROUGH TRAINING, THROUGH CORRECTIVE DISCIPLINE.
I THINK THAT, UH, DEESCALATION IS WHAT WE'RE ALL ABOUT.
YOU HAVE TO BE ABLE TO TURN IT ON AND TURN IT OFF.
BELIEVE ME, I KNOW I'VE FOUGHT PEOPLE FOR GUNS.
I'VE BEEN SHOT AT, I'VE BEEN IN VERY STRESSFUL SITUATIONS.
YOU HAVE TO TURN IT OFF AND, AND BE ABLE TO TURN IT OFF AND TURN IT ON.
AND I THINK THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS TO INCORPORATE THAT INTO OUR TRAINING.
NOW, WHAT DOES THAT LOOK LIKE? I DON'T KNOW.
BUT THAT IS ONE OF THE THINGS THAT I WILL DO IS FIND OUT, BECAUSE WHEN I SEE OFFICERS WHO ARE UP HERE AND THE, THE, THE SUSPECTS OR THE PEOPLE THEY'RE CONTACTING ARE DOWN HERE, THAT MAKES NO SENSE.
AND I THINK IT GOES BACK TO WHAT I SAID BEFORE, A LOT OF OFFICERS' PROBLEMS IS WE DON'T KNOW HOW TO TALK TO PEOPLE AND WE'VE GOT TO LEARN.
AND LIKE I SAID, CORRECTIVE CRITICISM, CORRECTIVE DISCIPLINE AND TRAINING.
I THINK WE'LL GET THAT ACCOMPLISHED.
UM, HOW DO YOU INTEND TO ENGAGE OUR YOUTH ACROSS OUR POPULATION TO PRODUCE POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS WITH OUR OFFICERS? I THINK THAT, UM, THE, THE, UM, SCHOOL RESOURCE OFFICERS THAT WE HAVE NOW ARE A GOOD START.
UNFORTUNATELY, THAT'S GONNA BE SOMETHING THAT'S GONNA HAVE TO COME WITH OUR INCREASE IN PERSONNEL.
UM, I WOULD LIKE TO SEE EVENTS AT SCHOOLS.
I I USED TO BE INVOLVED IN THOSE MYSELF, WHERE WHEN I WAS WITH SWAT, I WOULD GET SOME OF MY CANINE BUDDIES AND WE WOULD GO TO, UM, UM, DO DEMOS AT SCHOOLS.
AND LOOK, KIDS ARE NOT AFRAID OF US ANYMORE.
THEY WILL COME UP, THEY'LL TALK TO US, THEY'LL HUG US.
IT KILLS ME WHENEVER I SEE A PARENT WHEN I WALK IN.
YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT OUR OFFICERS ENGAGING WITH OUR YOUTH, ESPECIALLY THE LITTLE BITTY ONES THAT ARE JUST GROWING UP AND, AND ARE PERFECTLY INNOCENT RIGHT NOW, GETTING THEM USED TO US AND, AND, AND GOING TO COMMUNITY EVENTS AND INTERACTING WITH KIDS IS THE WAY TO GO.
MY 13 YEAR OLD DOESN'T LIKE TALKING TO ME NOW.
SO I THINK THAT ONCE THEY HIT 13, THEY KIND OF HAVE MADE THEIR OWN.
UH, THEY, AND THAT'S NOT TRUE.
BUT, BUT I THINK THAT, I THINK THAT WE HAVE TO START WITH THE YOUNG KIDS AND GET MORE INVOLVED IN THE SCHOOLS AND GO TALK TO KIDS.
A FEW OF US GOT 13 YEAR OLDS, SO WE REALLY
I, THAT WAS, THAT WAS A BAD SHOT.
NOW MY 16 YEAR OLD, NO, THAT'S NOT TRUE.
BUT YOU SAID SOMETHING EARLIER, UH, THAT KIND OF LEADS ME TO THIS QUESTION.
[02:30:01]
YOU CAME ON BEING THE PLACE THAT FOLKS WANTED TO BE.UM, BUT IN SOME PARTS OF THIS TIME, THAT'S NOT HOW THE COMMUNITY FELT.
SO I WANT TO ASK YOU THIS QUESTION.
WHAT IS YOUR BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE IN WORKING WITH THE POLICE UNION? DO YOU SEE AVENUES FOR IMPROVING RELATIONS WITHOUT COMPROMISING ACCOUNTABILITY? AND WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? SO I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF EXPERIENCE IN THAT AREA.
I'M IN THE UNION, BUT I'VE NEVER REALLY BEEN AN ACTIVE MEMBER.
I THINK THE UNION IS GREAT, AND I THINK THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE A RELATIONSHIP.
SOMEBODY'S GOTTA LOOK OUT FOR THE OFFICERS.
UM, AND I DON'T MIND THE UNION DOING THAT, BUT WE DO NEED TO HAVE SOME PRETTY TOUGH CONVERSATIONS.
WHENEVER SOMEONE IS CALLED ON THE CARPET AND THERE'S A DISCIPLINARY ISSUE, WE CAN'T JUST OVERLOOK DISCIPLINARY PROBLEMS. WHAT WE CAN DO IS MAKE SURE THAT THE ONES THAT CAN BE TURNED INTO A LEARNING OR A TRAINING EXPERIENCE ARE NOT THAT THEY'RE JUST IGNORED BECAUSE IT DIDN'T, BUT, BUT THERE'S ALWAYS, WHEN WE WERE ON SWAT AND WE WOULD RUN A SEARCH WARRANT, WE WOULD'VE A DEBRIEF AFTER, WHAT DID WE DO RIGHT? WHAT DID WE DO WRONG? WELL, YOU COULD DO THAT ON EVERY SINGLE CALL YOU GO ON.
YOU COULD, YOU COULD INTERNALLY DECIDE WHETHER OR NOT YOU COULD HAVE HANDLED SOMETHING DIFFERENTLY.
AND I THINK THAT IF WE TAKE THE MINOR INCIDENTS THAT MAYBE DON'T REACH THE LEVEL OF HARSH DISCIPLINE AND TURN IT INTO A TRAINING EXPERIENCE, THAT WE WILL BE TRUSTED AS ADMINISTRATION AND IN THE WAY THAT WE DELVE OUT DISCIPLINE.
AND I THINK THAT WITH, WITH THE UNION, WITH MAGNOLIA, I WOULD SIT DOWN WITH THEM AND, AND HAVE AN OPEN DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT THAT LOOKS LIKE.
DON'T LET AN OFFICER CONTINUE TO FAIL WITHOUT USING A FAILURE AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN.
MY QUESTION COMES FROM OFFICER WELLNESS AND WELLBEING.
HOW WILL YOU ADDRESS THE MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES THAT OFFICERS MAY FACE AND ENSURE THEIR HOLISTIC WELLBEING, PARTICULARLY AFTER DISTRESSING INCIDENTS? SO, UM, WITH OUR, UH, SUPPORT UNIT THAT WE HAVE, THOSE, THOSE THOSE OFFICERS THAT ARE IN OUR PEER SUPPORT UNIT DO A, DO AN OUTSTANDING JOB, I WOULD MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE TRAINED PROPERLY.
I, I AM NOT FAMILIAR WITH WHAT KIND OF TRAINING THEY HAVE RECEIVED.
UM, I DO KNOW THAT WE HAVE, UH, WITHIN THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS PARTNERED WITH OLOL AND THERE IS SOME WELLNESS PROGRAMS. AND I HAVEN'T LOOKED INTO 'EM MYSELF.
UM, BUT THERE'S SOME WELLNESS PROGRAMS THAT THEY OFFER AS WELL.
BUT I, BUT IT IS VERY IMPORTANT.
IT'S VERY IMPORTANT THAT OFFICERS KNOW THAT THERE'S AN OUTLET, THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO BE THE TOUGH GUY OR THE TOUGH GAL ALL THE TIME.
THAT THEY CAN SHOW EMOTION AND THEY CAN GO TALK TO SOMEBODY WHEN, WHEN NECESSARY.
I, I HAVE HEARD OF OFFICERS BEING ABLE TO GO DO THAT THROUGH OUR PEER SUPPORT UNIT.
I DON'T KNOW THE DEPTH IN WHICH THAT IS OR WHAT KIND OF TRAINING, ADDITIONAL TRAINING THEY WOULD NEED, BUT THAT IS DEFINITELY SOMETHING THAT WE WOULD LOOK INTO AND DO.
MR. HYATT, THIS IS A LOADED QUESTION.
SO IF YOU FOLLOW ALONG, BRPT HAS AN ANNUAL BUDGET OF 103 MILLION.
THIS REPRESENTS JUST OVER ONE THIRD OF OUR CITY PARISH ANNUAL OPERATING BUDGET.
OVER THE PAST TWO YEARS, OFFICERS HAVE RECEIVED THREE PAY ADJUSTMENTS TOTALING 13%.
THESE E THE INCREASES WERE FUNDED IN PART THROUGH EFFICIENCY MOVES IDENTIFIED BY A TEAM OF OUTSIDE LAW ENFORCEMENT PROFESSIONALS, ORGANIZATIONAL AND OPERATIONS.
OPERATIONAL CHANGES AIMED AT GENERATING EFFICIENCY AND PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT OFTEN GENERATE RESISTANCE FROM SOME SEGMENTS OF THE DEPARTMENT'S WORKFORCE.
AS A CHIEF, HOW WOULD YOU ADDRESS MAKING THESE TYPE OF CHANGES THAT CAN HELP US IMPROVE OFFICER'S PAGAN OVERALL SERVICE DELIVERY? I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT TO SEE WHERE WE'RE SPENDING OUR MONEY TO MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE SPENDING OUR MONEY IN THE APPROPRIATE AREAS.
AS MANY OFFICES AS WE ARE SHORT, WE SHOULD HAVE PLENTY OF MONEY TO GO AROUND.
SO I THINK THAT WE NEED TO LOOK AT WHERE WE'VE BEEN SPENDING OUR MONEY, WHAT CAN BE CUT OUT AND WHAT IS NECESSARY.
I THINK FRIVOLOUS SPENDING IS AN ABSOLUTE SIN AND SHOULD NOT TAKE PLACE.
UM, I'M NOT CURRENTLY ON ANY, UM, ADMINISTRATIVE PANEL OR WHATEVER THAT LOOKS AT OUR OVERALL BUDGET AND WHERE WE'RE SPENDING OUR MONEY, BUT IT'S CROSSED MY MIND THAT THAT'S GONNA BE A VERY IMPORTANT ASPECT OF BEING THE CHIEF OF POLICE.
[02:35:02]
I THINK WE HAVE TO LOOK AND SEE WHERE OUR MONEY'S BEING SPENT AND ARE WE SPENDING IT PROPERLY? ARE WE BEING GOOD STEWARDS OF THE MONEY THAT WE'RE ENTRUSTED WITH? THANK YOU VERY MUCH.YOU NOW HAVE TWO MINUTES FOR CLOSING STATEMENT.
WELL, I JUST WANT TO THANK Y'ALL FOR THE OPPORTUNITY.
UM, SINCE I PUT MY NAME IN FOR CHIEF, I HAVE PRAYED FOR WISDOM AND DISCERNMENT FOR Y'ALL AS WELL AS ME THAT YOU ALL MAKE THE RIGHT CHOICE.
AND IF IT'S NOT ME, THAT'S FINE.
WHEREVER GOD LEADS YOU IS WHERE WE SHOULD GO.
UM, WE'VE HAD SOME UPS AND DOWNS IN THE CITY AND WE'VE BEEN PRETTY LOW IN THE PAST FEW YEARS, ESPECIALLY WITH OUR CRIME RATE.
WE'RE STARTING TO GET A LITTLE BIT OF A HANDLE ON THAT.
UM, WE'VE HAD A LOT OF GREAT PROGRAMS THAT HAVE BEEN IMPLEMENTED.
UH, PSNP, N-I-P-S-P, THE ACRONYMS GO ON AND ON.
BUT, UM, UM, I, I REALLY THINK THAT THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT THING THAT Y'ALL ARE DOING, AND I WANT Y'ALL TO KNOW THAT I SUPPORT WHATEVER DECISION Y'ALL MAKE.
AND THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING HERE AND FOR THE OPPORTUNITY FOR ME TO BE HERE TONIGHT.
THAT CONCLUDES THE INTERVIEW FOR MR. HINES, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.
NEXT WE WILL SEE FROM M MANNING.
WHAT TIME ARE WE SUPPOSED TO START? THURSDAY RIGHT HERE.
I'M THE CHAIR OF THE CHIEF OF POLICE INTERVIEW COMMITTEE.
THE WAY THE PROCESS IS GOING TO WORK THIS EVENING, YOU'LL BE GIVEN THREE MINUTES TO MAKE AN OPENING STATEMENT, AND THEN EACH ONE OF THE COMMITTEE MEMBERS CAN ASK UP TO TWO QUESTIONS FROM A POOL OF 12 CA, UH, CATEGORIES THAT HAVE WE'VE CHOSEN.
WE MAY NOT ASK TWO, BUT WE CAN ASK UP TO TWO.
AFTER YOU'VE ANSWERED EACH QUESTION, YOU WILL BE GIVEN TWO MINUTES TO MAKE A CLOSING REMARKS.
SO WHENEVER YOU'RE READY, WE'RE GONNA START WITH YOUR OPENING STATEMENT.
WELL, FIRST I DO WANT TO THANK FIRST, I DO WANNA THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING ON THE COMMITTEE.
I WAS GONNA SAY, I DO WANT TO THANK Y'ALL FOR BEING ON THIS COMMITTEE.
SOME PEOPLE ACTUALLY BELIEVE THIS IS A PAID POSITION THAT Y'ALL ARE IN RIGHT NOW, AND IT'S NOT
I KNOW IT'S NOT, BUT, BUT MAYBE THEY DON'T.
SO AGAIN, THANK Y'ALL FOR DEDICATING YOUR TIME FOR THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE.
UM, FIRST LET ME SAY THAT I RESPECT, HONOR, FEAR, AND SEEK GUIDANCE FROM GOD.
I AM A BORN AGAIN CHRISTIAN, AND I I LIVE THAT WAY.
MY WIFE AND I, WE LIVE IN THE SEA LIMITS.
WE ACTUALLY LIVE NORTH OF FLORIDA BOULEVARD AND WE HEAR GUNFIRE ABOUT THREE TO 10 TIMES A WEEK.
SO I CAN IMAGINE AN EVEN WORSE AREAS WHENEVER THESE CITIZENS ARE HEARING GUNFIRE.
I KNOW HOW THEY FEEL BECAUSE I FEEL THE SAME WAY.
SO IF I AM, UH, SELECTED BY YOU AND APPOINTED BY THE MAYOR, THEN I WOULD DO MY BEST TO TRY TO MAKE THAT A LITTLE BIT BETTER, GET A PERCENTAGES DOWN, BECAUSE THAT'S JUST, UH, NOT ACCEPTABLE.
UM, UH, JUST SO YOU DO KNOW, UH, UM, THERE'S MYSELF AND ONE OTHER APPLICANT, UH, TIM HENDERSON, THAT WE ARE RETIRED AND WE'RE GETTING A RETIREMENT CHECK.
SO WHENEVER, IF EITHER ONE OF US WERE TO TAKE THIS JOB, THEN WE WOULD STOP GETTING THE RETIREMENT CHECK.
'CAUSE WE GO BACK INTO THE, INTO THE, UH, RETIREMENT SYSTEM.
SO WITH THAT BEING SAID, THE, WITH THE PAY BEING MORE THAN I MAKE WITH MY RETIREMENT CHECK, UM, I WOULD ONLY BE MAKING ABOUT 30 TO $55,000 A YEAR.
SO YOU DEFINITELY KNOW IT'S NOT FOR THE MONEY THAT I WOULD BE DOING THIS.
IT'S DEFINITELY FOR THE DEPARTMENT AND FOR THE, UH, THE CITY OF BATON ROUGE, HOPEFULLY GET EVERYBODY'S MORALE GOING AGAIN.
HOW YOU DOING, MR. MANNING? UH, SO I NOTICED YOU HAVE A LIST OF FIXES IN YOUR RESUME THAT YOU SENT US, AND A HANDFUL OF THEM RELATE TO TECHNOLOGY.
AND SO SECTION EIGHT IS DATA TECHNOLOGY AND TRANSPARENCY.
AND ONE QUESTION THAT I'D LIKE TO START WITH
[02:40:01]
IS, ASIDE FROM WHAT'S HERE, ARE THERE ANY NASCENT PRACTICES OR TECHNOLOGIES THAT YOU BELIEVE COULD HELP BRPD ACHIEVE ITS MISSION OF PROTECTING AND SERVING THE PUBLIC? AND IF SO, DO YOU THINK THAT ANY OF THOSE PRACTICES MIGHT PROTECT PRESENT RISKS OR CONCERNS TO, UH, THE PUBLIC AT LARGE OR EVEN THE DEPARTMENT, CONSTITUTIONAL CONCERNS, PRIVACY, UH, EVEN PERSONNEL MISTAKES? WELL, I GUESS THAT'S ALONG THE LINES OF CAMERAS AND NEW YORK, UH, IS A FANTASTIC, UH, CITY AND THEY HAVE A FANTASTIC POLICE DEPARTMENT.THEY'RE PRETTY MUCH THE BENCHMARK, BUT THEY HAVE CAMERAS EVERYWHERE AND THEY'RE CONNECTED TO A LOT OF INDIVIDUAL'S, CAMERAS, THEIR OWN PERSONAL CAMERAS FOR THEIR HOME OR, OR EVEN FOR THEIR WORK.
AND WHENEVER SOMETHING HAPPENS, THEY CAN SEE SO QUICKLY WHAT THE PROBLEM IS.
LET'S SAY THERE'S A WRECK AT, UM, FLORIDA AND SHERWOOD FOREST, IF THEY HEAR THE OFFICER BEING DISPATCHED THERE, THEY CAN ACTUALLY LOOK AND SEE, OKAY, WELL THEY'RE PULLED OFF ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND THEY CAN, UH, LET THE OFFICER KNOW, HEY, THEY'RE RIGHT HERE ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD, UM, OUT OF TRAFFIC.
SO THAT OFFICER WON'T BE GOING TOO FAST TO TRY TO GET THERE TO HELP 'EM.
BUT I THINK THIS IS JUST THE WAY IT'S GOING TO BE.
EVERYBODY HAS CAMERAS, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE THESE RING DOORBELLS.
I THINK IT'S JUST THE WAY IT IS THAT CAMERAS ARE EVERYWHERE IN OUR LIFE, AND IT'S GOING TO CONTINUE BEING THAT WAY.
UM, AS POLICE CHIEF, YOU WOULD BE GIVEN THE FINAL AUTHORITY, AND LET ME PAUSE RIGHT THERE AND LET YOU KNOW THAT THIS IS COMING FROM THE RECRUITMENT, RETENTION AND PERSONNEL SUPPORT CATEGORY.
AND I'LL START MY QUESTION OVER.
AS POLICE CHIEF, YOU BE GIVEN THE FINAL AUTHORITY TO MAKE ALL HIRING DECISIONS IF PRESENTED WITH A NEW HIRE CANDIDATE WHOSE HIRING WOULD BE DEEMED CONTROVERSIAL BY SOME, WHAT WOULD BE THE PROCESS YOU WOULD EMPLOY IN MAKING THAT DECISION? I GUESS IT DEPENDS ON WHAT THE CONTROVERSY IS.
UM, I BELIEVE I KNOW WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT THOUGH, AND I WOULD'VE A ISSUE WITH THAT.
UM, I DEFINITELY BELIEVE EVERYBODY'S INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY.
BUT IN THE POLICE DEPARTMENT, YOU DO LOSE A LOT OF YOUR RIGHTS ACTUALLY.
AND YOUR FREEDOM, YOU, YOU'RE SCRUTINIZED EVEN MORE SO THAN A, A REGULAR CITIZEN.
SO I WOULD HAVE A, I WOULD'VE ISSUES WITH THAT, BUT, UH, HOPEFULLY WE CAN GET ENOUGH PEOPLE OVER.
UH, MR. MANNING, WHAT ARE YOUR, THIS IS COMING FROM COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
WHAT ARE YOUR PROPOSALS CONCERNING NETWORKING WITH OTHER SECTORS OF THE COMMUNITY, SUCH AS CHURCHES, NONPROFITS, ADVOCACY GROUPS WHO WORK TO ADDRESS CAUSE OF CRIME, SUCH AS POOR EDUCATION, JOB OPPORTUNITIES, ADDICTION, ET CETERA.
AND WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA? WELL, LAST COUPLE YEARS WE HAD A, UH, A SYSTEM WHERE WE HAD A BUNCH OF LEADERS IN THE COMMUNITY, LIKE PASTORS OR COACHES OR TEACHERS THAT LIVED IN THE AREA.
AND THE IDEA WAS TO CALL ON THEM IF YOU HAVE A, A SITUATION THAT'S GOING ON IN THEIR AREA THAT THEY LIVE IN, TO WHERE THEY CAN ACTUALLY COME OUT AND TRY TO CALM THINGS DOWN.
'CAUSE THESE, THESE PEOPLE THAT ARE JUST ACTING LIKE DINGLINGS, THEY'RE NOT GONNA LISTEN TO THE POLICE.
THEY'LL LISTEN TO THE PREACHER A WHOLE LOT QUICKER.
SO I WOULD DEFINITELY BE USING THAT TO, TO OUR ADVANTAGE AND TO THEIR ADVANTAGE FOR THEIR COMMUNITY.
MR. CALWELL, UM, I'M INTERESTED TO KNOW, UM, IF YOU WOULD BE OPEN TO HAVING CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT, UH, IF YOU'D BE WILLING TO WORK WITH THAT.
IF YOU'RE FAMILIAR WITH CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT.
UM, YOU KNOW, WE, THERE ARE TRUST ISSUES, UH, YOU KNOW, ESPECIALLY INVOLVING SOME OF THE THINGS THAT HAVE BEEN GOING ON RECENTLY.
UH, AND CIVILIAN OVERSIGHT WOULD BE A WAY TO, UH, POSSIBLY REPAIR POLICE COMMUNITY RELATIONS.
SO IF YOU WERE THE CHIEF, HOW, HOW MIGHT YOU UTILIZE OR INCORPORATE THAT INTO THE ADMINISTRATION? I DO BELIEVE IN, IN, UH, ACTUALLY MAKING IT A LITTLE BIT MORE PERSONAL.
HAVING LIKE THREE OR FOUR PEOPLE SELECTED FOR WHATEVER REASON, BECAUSE THERE'S NO SENSE
[02:45:01]
IN BUTTONING HEADS ALL THE TIME.IF YOU'RE GOING TO DO SOMETHING THAT SOME PEOPLE AREN'T GOING TO LIKE.
AND IT CREATES CONFUSION AND, AND TROUBLES FOR EVERYONE.
I'D RATHER TALK TO SOMEBODY AND GET THEIR OPINION AND I'M GOING TO GET A COMPLETELY DIFFERENT OPINION FROM THE CITIZENS.
SO I DEFINITELY BELIEVE THAT'S A GOOD IDEA.
PASTOR GIBSON, HOW WILL YOU INCORPORATE DEESCALATION TACTICS INTO STANDARD POLICE PROCEDURES? THAT'S GOING TO COME ON.
THE SUPERVISORS, THE SUPERVISORS, THE SERGEANTS OVER THE OFFICERS, THE OFFICERS AND THE, AND THE SERGEANTS THAT ARE THE FIRST LINE OFFICERS THAT GET TO A SITUATION.
AND THE SERGEANT IS, AND SENIOR OFFICERS ARE, ARE TRAINED WELL ENOUGH TO KNOW WHEN SOMETHING'S GOING BAD, SO THEY SHOULD BE ABLE TO TAKE CARE OF IT.
AND IF NOT, THEN WE'LL JUST CONTINUE TO DO MORE TRAINING AND GET BETTER AT WHAT WE DO FOR A SITUATION LIKE THAT.
UH, THIS IS FROM THE RECRUITMENT RETENTION AND PERSONNEL SUPPORT CATEGORY.
UH, MR. MANNING, WHAT CAN BE DONE IN BATON ROUGE TO RECRUIT MORE QUALIFIED OFFICERS AND KEEP THEM? AND HOW WOULD YOU IMPLEMENT A PLAN? WELL, I THINK ONE THING WE'RE MISSING IS, UH, THERE'S A GOOD MANY ILLEGAL ALIENS IN THE CITY.
WE ALL KNOW IT, AND THEY'RE NOT REALLY COUNTED IN THE PERCENTAGES.
BUT, YOU KNOW, I BELIEVE, UH, THE HISPANIC POPULATION, THE ASIAN POPULATION, I BELIEVE WE NEED TO TARGET THEM AS FAR AS TRYING TO RECRUIT SOME OF THEIR GOOD, FINE, UPSTANDING BOYS AND GIRLS.
UH, THAT CAN JUST HELP AGAIN, THAT COMMUNITY BECAUSE THEY KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON.
THEY CAN TEACH US A WHOLE LOT MORE THAN WE CAN TEACH THEM, PROBABLY IN THE VERY BEGINNING AND LATER ON IN THEIR CAREER.
BUT, UH, THAT'S, THAT'S ONE BIG THING I NEED TO LOOK AT FIRST.
UH, I'M GOING TO LEAN RIGHT INTO SOMETHING YOU SAID.
YOU SAY YOU LIVED OFF OF FLORIDA BOULEVARD.
UH, SO HOW DO YOU PROPOSE TO IMPROVE RELATIONS WITH THE COMMUNITY, ESPECIALLY THE BLACK COMMUNITY, TO IMPROVE TRUST AND OPEN COMMUNICATION? WHAT HAS BEEN YOUR EXPERIENCE IN THIS AREA THAT'S COMING FROM THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT SECTION? I'LL TELL YOU, UM, I KNOW SOMEBODY, AND Y'ALL ALL PROBABLY KNOW SOMEBODY THAT HAS A SUSPENDED DRIVER'S LICENSE.
YOU MAY NOT KNOW THAT THEY HAVE A SUSPENDED DRIVER'S LICENSE, BUT THEY DO.
AND THIS REALLY WEIGHS ON A PERSON'S MIND AND THEY REALLY DON'T GO OUT AND TRY TO GET A JOB OR GO TO WORK AS MUCH AS THEY SHOULD BECAUSE OF THIS HANGING OVER THEIR HEAD.
AND I DO BELIEVE THAT TO GET WITH THE STATE POLICE DMV AND TRY TO JUST HELP GET THESE DRIVER'S LICENSE STRAIGHT, MAYBE HAVE A, LIKE A FAIR, LIKE A BUSINESS TYPE FAIR TO WHERE PEOPLE CAN COME, WHERE WE CAN ACTUALLY HELP THEM GET THEIR DRIVER'S LICENSE STRAIGHT, WHICH WILL, I BELIEVE HELPED GET THEIR LIFE STRAIGHTENED.
AND HONESTLY, I BELIEVE THEY'LL JUST FEEL BETTER ABOUT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT 'CAUSE WE'RE INVOLVED WITH THAT.
SO I WAS, I THINK THAT WOULD JUST BE A FANTASTIC START THAT WOULD BUILD UP SOME, SOME, YOU KNOW, SOME COMMUNITY RELATIONS.
AND WE CAN ALSO HAVE RECRUITING THERE TOO, AND MAYBE WE CAN FIND SOME FINE INDIVIDUALS THERE.
UM, MY QUESTION COMES FROM STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES.
PLEASE DISCUSS WITH US IDEAS YOU HAVE FOR VIOLENCE REDUCTION IN OUR COMMUNITY.
WELL, Y'ALL PROBABLY ARE NOT GOING LIKE THIS, BUT
AND I DO NOT KNOW OF ANOTHER METROPOLITAN POLICE DEPARTMENT THAT DOESN'T HAVE A NARCOTICS DIVISION.
WE NEED TO START ANOTHER NARCOTICS DIVISION.
WE NEED TO HAVE THESE DETECTIVES THAT CAN ACTUALLY GET TO THE DEALERS AND TRY TO MAKE THINGS BETTER FOR EVERYBODY.
UH, THAT'S, THE DRUGS IS JUST A, A TERRIBLE, TERRIBLE THING.
IF RIGHT NOW, IF, IF, UH, YOU KNOW, WITH BASICALLY NARCOTICS HAVE BEEN DISBANDED BESIDES, UH, YOU KNOW, A COUPLE PEOPLE THAT WORK WITH THE DEA AND THEN OUR HIGHWAY TION GUYS.
BUT YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW IF YOU CALL AND SAID, HEY, JOE BLOW IS SELLING DRUGS, MY KID, IT'S GONNA BE A UNIFORMED OFFICER THAT'S GONNA TRY TO HELP.
AND THAT THAT GUY JUST DOES NOT HAVE TIME TO HELP.
HE HAS TO GO FROM CALL TO CALL
[02:50:01]
AND IT JUST GETS LOST.AND I THINK WE DO NEED A NARCOTICS DIVISION BACK.
AND, UH, AND GOOD THING IS WE'RE STARTING FROM SCRATCH.
MR. MANNING, DESCRIBE A SITUATION WHERE YOU MADE A DECISION THAT WAS MET WITH A NEGATIVE OUTCOME.
HOW DID YOU HANDLE THE FEEDBACK FROM YOUR SUPERVISOR? WELL, THE, AS FAR AS MY LEADERSHIP, UH, I BELIEVE IT'S RESPECT, UM, VERY RESPECTED.
I TREAT EVERYBODY FAIRLY AND I ALWAYS TRY TO, UM, YOU KNOW, I WAS THE CHIEF OF DETECTIVE, SO ALL THE DETECTIVES UNDER ME, THEY KNEW THAT, THAT I WOULD HAVE THEIR BACK IF LONG AS THEY'RE DOING RIGHT, I'LL HAVE THEIR BACK.
I'M SURE THE CITY WOULD TOO LONG AS YOU'RE FOLLOWING POLICY AND PROCEDURE.
BUT THERE HAS BEEN A TIME WHENEVER I WOULD SAY, HEY, IF THERE'S A A I'M AT A SCENE OR, OR WHATEVER, AND I CAN SAY, HEY, TRY THIS AVENUE.
AND THEN THEY'LL SAY, WELL, WE DON'T THINK WE SHOULD TRY THAT.
AND I'LL SAY, WELL DO IT ANYWAY.
SO IT'S PRETTY MUCH A DIRECT APPROACH, BUT HONESTLY, I'M VERY RESPECTED.
I JUST DID NOT HAVE THAT PROBLEM MUCH AT ALL.
MR. MANNING, UM, SO ONE OF THESE TOPICS IS IT'S CATEGORY 10 OFFICER WELLNESS AND WELLBEING.
AND BEFORE I ASK THIS QUESTION, I'D JUST LIKE TO SAY, UM, I THINK WE ALL APPRECIATE YOUR, YOUR CANDOR AND HONESTY BECAUSE I NOTICED ONE OF THE DETAILS YOU PUT IN HERE IS THAT YOU LOST YOUR SON TO A DRUG OVERDOSE.
AND, UH, I I THINK THAT WE APPRECIATE THAT KIND OF HONESTY AND THAT HAD ME WONDERING, BEING A POLICE OFFICER, SEEING THIS HAPPEN AND HOW THIS MUST WEIGH ON YOU.
HOW WILL YOU ADDRESS THE MENTAL HEALTH CHALLENGES THAT OFFICERS FACE, WHETHER PERSONAL OR, UH, WHETHER IT'S AFTER DISTRESSING EVENTS THAT THEY MAY ENCOUNTER IN THEIR LINE OF WORK THAT IS AB ACTUALLY HUMONGOUS? THAT'S, THAT'S NOT A SIMPLE THING THAT YOU'RE ASKING ABOUT BECAUSE WE HAVE A, A LOT OF HOMELESS PEOPLE, AND DON'T GET ME WRONG, I DO NOT LIKE PANHANDLING.
UM, I DON'T PUT UP WITH PANHANDLING.
I DON'T LIKE WHENEVER PEOPLE ARE OUTSIDE OF A BUSINESS BOTHERING THE CUSTOMERS WALKING IN AND OUT THAT I DON'T PUT UP WITH.
BUT IF YOU CAN JUST REALIZE THAT THEY ARE A PERSON TOO, AND IF YOU ACTUALLY REALIZE THAT ANY OF US COULD BE HOMELESS, SOME THINGS CAN GO WRONG IN OUR LIFE.
YOU KNOW, RETIREMENT SYSTEM CRASHES AND I DON'T HAVE A RETIREMENT CHECK ANYMORE, THAT WOULD BE A BIG PROBLEM.
I GET BOOTED OUT AFTER A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF TIME.
AND, UH, AND I ALSO KNOW WHICH PIECE OF WOODS I'M GONNA GO LIVE IN A TENT, SO
BUT THE, UH, HOMELESS ARE THE, THE MAIN FOCUS OF THAT, WHAT YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT.
AND I BELIEVE WE SHOULD HAVE JUST LIKE EMS ARISE ON SCENE, WE SHOULD ACTUALLY HAVE A TEAM OF, UH, HEALTH OFFICIALS THAT ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO HANDLE THESE PEOPLE BEFORE IT EVEN GETS TO THE POLICE.
UH, LEVEL OF EMS WILL SHOW UP NOW, BUT THEN WHENEVER THE PERSON'S FIGHTING AND COMBATIVE, THE POLICE HAVE TO SHOW UP AND THEN IT GETS EVEN WORSE.
BUT IF THE PROFESSIONALS SHOW UP, THEY KNOW HOW TO DEESCALATE US, UH, A SITUATION A WHOLE LOT FASTER THAN US OR EMS. SO I DO BELIEVE THERE NEEDS TO BE ANOTHER BRANCH THAT WOULD BE ABLE TO GO HELP OUT.
MS. VICTORIA, MR. MANNING, UM, HOW DO YOU AIM TO ENSURE THAT THE POLICE DEPARTMENT'S COMPOSITION MIRRORS CANDIDATES FROM UN UNDERREPRESENTED, UH, COMMUNITIES? WELL, THAT GOES BACK TO THE, THE ASIAN AND THE HISPANIC, UH, POPULATION THAT WE HAVE.
I DO BELIEVE WE KNEW WE NEED TO GET MORE IN LINE WITH THE PERCENTAGE.
UH, UNFORTUNATE THING IS A LOT OF THOSE PEOPLE ARE NOT COUNTED.
WE KNOW THEY'RE NOT COUNTED BECAUSE THEY ARE ILLEGAL ALIENS, BUT THEY'RE STILL HERE AND THEY'RE STILL LIVING HERE IN OUR COMMUNITY.
AND THEY, SOME OF THEM ARE DOING WRONG, BUT SOME OF THEM WOULD DO BETTER IF THEY'RE TREATED BETTER.
UM, I THINK JUST CONSISTENTLY GO FOR, FOR THAT.
UM, A THAT, UH, GROUP OF, UH, HISPANICS AND ASIANS THAT WOULD KIND OF MIRROR THE, THE LAW ENFORCEMENT, THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT, UM, THAT OUR MAKEUP AND OUR PERCENTAGES.
AND FOR THE RECORD, THAT QUESTION CAME FROM THE RECRUITMENT, RETENTION AND PERSONNEL SUPPORT CATEGORY.
[02:55:02]
UH, GOOD AFTERNOON AGAIN.UH, HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN RETIRED? I RETIRED JUNE OF 2020.
UM, A LOT, UH, A LOT OF WHAT CHIEF PAUL HAS IMPLEMENTED HAS BEEN AROUND 20, UH, FIRST CENTURY POLICING.
SO I'M INTERESTED TO KNOW WHAT YOU THINK IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PILLAR OF 21ST, UH, CENTURY POLICING AS FAR AS THE BATON ROUGE COMMUNITY GOES.
WELL, DNA IS VERY, VERY, VERY IMPORTANT.
AND, UH, IT'S, IT WILL HELP MAKE A CASE AND HELP YOU FIND YOUR SUSPECT, BUT IT WILL ALSO EXONERATE PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN BROUGHT UP AS SUSPECTS WHENEVER IT TURNS OUT THEY HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH IT.
SO I THINK WE NEED TO KEEP ON ADDING ONTO OUR, OUR TEXTS, OUR DNA TEXTS THAT WE HAVE AT THE STATE POLICE, AND THEN THE REAL TIME CRIME CENTER.
THERE'S A A, A WHOLE LOT I BELIEVE CAN BE DONE WITH THAT.
UM, I WORKED VERY CLOSE WITH CHIEF PAUL, AND HE'S GOT SOME FANTASTIC IDEALS THAT JUST, THEY DIDN'T COME TO LIGHT BEFORE.
HE LEFT WITH LIKE A DRONE SHOT SPOTTER.
A GUN GOES OFF SHOT SPOTTER HEARS THAT, AND THE DRONE WOULD LEAVE ITS PERCH, GO AND TAKE PICTURES AND START FEEDING BACK SOME SURVEILLANCE VIDEO.
I THINK IT'S SOME GOOD STUFF LIKE THAT.
UM, I'M ALL ABOUT TECHNOLOGY TO HELP YOU OUT.
PASTOR GIBSON, WHAT STRATEGIES WILL YOU EMPLOY TO PROMOTE COMMUNITY-BASED OUTREACH AND VIOLENCE PREVENTION INITIATIVES? WELL, WE HAVE HAD COMMUNITY POLICING FOR, FOR YEARS ACTUALLY.
AND IT JUST, IT NEEDS TO GET DOWN TO A LITTLE BIT CLOSER PERSONAL CONTACT WHERE YOU CAN ACTUALLY TALK TO SOMEBODY IN THE COMMUNITY AND NOT JUST TALK ABOUT IT AS IT'S A SITUATION.
AND I WOULD HAVE, WOULD LIKE TO HAVE AMBASSADORS FOR BEACH DISTRICT EAST POLICE, UH, DISTRICT THAT COULD BE THE GO-TO PEOPLE AND THAT, THAT THESE PEOPLE WOULD BE VERY COMFORTABLE TALKING TO.
AND THAT WAY I THINK WE CAN GET A WHOLE LOT MORE FROM THE, UH, THE PUBLIC AND, AND EVEN CRIME STOPPERS.
CRIME STOPPERS IS A, IS A FANTASTIC TOOL.
IT'S A GREAT SYSTEM, BUT SOMETIMES YOU HAVE TO GUIDE SOMEBODY TO CRIME STOPPERS.
YOU HAVE TO GUIDE THEM TO CALL.
AND I THINK THOSE AMBASSADORS WOULD BE SOME GREAT PEOPLE FOR THAT.
UM, THIS IS FROM THE SECTION CALLED POSSIBLE QUESTIONS FOR CURRENT BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT CANDIDATES.
UH, MR. MANNING, THROUGHOUT YOUR CAREER AS AN OFFICER, UH, HAVE YOU SEEN ANY POLICIES OR PROCEDURES THAT YOU BELIEVE NEED TO BE CHANGED? I GUESS EVERYBODY SEES A LITTLE THING THINGS DIFFERENTLY, BUT HONESTLY, UM, THE LOWER YOU ARE ON THE TOTEM POLE, THE HARDER IT IS TO SEE, WHENEVER YOU GET UP TO BE CHIEF DETECTIVES OR OR CHIEF OF STAFF, DEPUTY CHIEF, YOU THINK ALL KINDS OF BAD THINGS.
BUT ONCE YOU GET TO THAT LEVEL, YOU ACTUALLY SEE WHAT'S GOING ON.
YOU ACTUALLY SEE WHAT'S GOING ON BEHIND THE SCENES AND YOU'RE, YOU'RE VERY FORTUNATE BECAUSE YOU CAN SEE, UH, A POLICY BEING A CERTAIN WAY AND YOU KNOW WHY IT'S, IT'S A CERTAIN WAY.
UH, I THINK IT'S MORE OF KNOWLEDGE AND MAKING SURE THAT THE OFFICERS ARE TRAINED AND UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT'S GOING ON BECAUSE IT, IT, IT'S A SHAME.
BUT, UM, THE RUMORS ARE, ARE SO BAD, UM, FROM THE YOUNG OFFICERS UP TO SERGEANTS LIEUTENANTS.
BUT WHENEVER YOU GET TO THE LEVEL I WAS IN, AND THEY WOULD, SOMEBODY WOULD ASK ME LIKE, WHY DID YOU TRANSFER JOE BLOW? LIKE, WELL, SEEMED LIKE IF I DID THAT, I WOULD'VE HAD TO LIKE SIGN SOMETHING, BUT I DIDN'T SIGN ANYTHING.
SO I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU TALKED ABOUT.
AND THAT REALLY, I GUESS I'M NOT ANSWERING AS FAR AS SOMETHING TO BE CHANGED, IT SET BETTER COMMUNICATION FROM THE UPPER LEVEL DOWN.
AND IF I UNDERSTAND YOU, YOU'RE, YOU'RE SAYING THAT AT THE UPPER LEVEL, UM, YOU MAY SEE FEWER THINGS THAT NEED TO BE CHANGED THAN SOMEBODY AT THE LOWER ROOM? WELL, YOU NEED TO, YOU'RE AT THE POSITION WHERE YOU CAN ACTUALLY SEE WHY THEY'RE BEING DONE AND IT DOESN'T GET OUT TO THE OFFICERS BY THE TIME YOU GO DOWN THE CHAIN OF COMMAND.
[03:00:01]
I DEFINITELY BELIEVE IN CHAIN OF COMMAND GOING FROM LOWER TO UP, BUT THE CHAIN OF COMMAND CAN GO FROM UP TO DOWN ANY DIRECTION IT WANTS TO GO.AND I BELIEVE THAT IT, IT'S, A LOT OF TIMES IT'S JUST COMMUNICATION, LACK OF COMMUNICATION THAT THE OFFICER THINKS THE POLICY'S FOR A PARTICULAR REASON AND IT HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THAT REASON.
IT'S FOR SOMETHING COMPLETELY DIFFERENT.
SO I THINK IT'S A, A COMMUNICATION THING MORE THAN ANYTHING.
UH, MR. MANN, I'M SORRY TO HEAR ABOUT YOUR SON AS WELL.
UM, THIS QUESTION, UH, SPEAKS TO, UM, STANDARDS AND STRATEGIES.
IF YOU'RE LOOKING FOR A SECTION, HOW DO YOU PLAN TO ADDRESS POTENTIALLY DISCRIMINATORY STOPS AND ARRESTS? THAT GOES BACK TO TRAINING.
I MEAN, YOU, YOU FALL BACK ON TRAINING.
WHENEVER A SITUATION GOES BAD, YOU AUTOMATICALLY FALL BACK ON YOUR TRAINING AND THOSE TYPE OF STOPS CAN FEEL BAD PRETTY QUICK, AND YOU'RE GONNA GO BACK TO YOUR TRAINING.
SO IT IS TRAINING, TRAINING IS THE PROBLEM.
YOU NEED MORE TRAINING, BETTER TRAINING, AND THEN YOU NEED TO FIND PEOPLE WHO ACTUALLY KNOW HOW TO DO THE TRAINING AND NOT JUST GO FROM A BOOK THAT IS SENT TO YOU.
UH, I BELIEVE TRAINING IS, IS A THING TO HELP THAT OUT.
MATTHEW, THIS QUESTION COMES FROM PERSONAL APPROACH AND LEADERSHIP.
WHAT DOES YOUR FIRST 100 DAYS LOOK LIKE? RANK THE TOP FIVE PRIORITIES IN YOUR PROCESS FOR ACCOMPLISHING THEM? UH, FIRST I WOULD BE, WOULD BE PICKING MY STAFF, THE STAFF THAT, THAT I CLICK WITH, WE MESH TOGETHER.
THAT WOULD, THAT WOULD BE BIG.
I WOULD CONTINUE THE INVESTIGATIONS THAT ARE GOING ON.
UM, THE OFFICER'S MORALE IS SO LOW RIGHT NOW AND IT'S JUST A SHAME, BUT IT IS.
AND I WOULD TRY TO COME UP WAYS TO BOOST THEIR MORALE.
SOME, BECAUSE WHENEVER THEIR MORALE'S BETTER, THEN THE CITY'S MORALE'S BETTER.
AND THE CITY, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN GO OFF AND VISIT SOMEWHERE AND YOU CAN BE PROUD TO SAY, YOU KNOW, YOU LIVE IN BATON ROUGE AND YOU'RE PROUD OF YOUR POLICE DEPARTMENT.
BUT TO DO THAT, THE OFFICER HAS TO BE PROUD OF THEIR POLICE DEPARTMENT FIRST.
SO I WOULD DEFINITELY TRY TO GET MORALE BUILT UP.
I GOT A COUPLE IDEALS, BUT I'M NOT SURE WHICH WAY THEY WOULD GO.
AND I WOULD WANT TO MAKE UP LOOK AT THE MAKEUP OF UNIFORM OFFICERS, WHERE THEY'RE AT, HOW THEY'RE PATROLLING.
I THINK, I THINK THAT'S WHAT, FOUR OF 'EM, I THINK THE, THE FIFTH ONE WAS GET WITH THESE LEADERS ONCE THE, ONCE THE POLICE DEPARTMENT SETTLED DOWN IN THE HUNDRED DAYS, THEN GET WITH THESE LEADERS I TOLD YOU ABOUT AND SEE IF WE CAN GET SOME VOLUNTEERS TO ACTUALLY HELP US AND WE CAN HELP THEM.
UH, THESE PASTORS AND TEACHERS AND, YOU KNOW, THE CHIEFS WOULD SAY BARBERS, THERE'S PEOPLE THAT ARE RESPECTED IN THE COMMUNITY AND THAT THEY BRING A LOT OF WEIGHT TO A BAD SITUATION.
MR. MANNING, THE POSITION OF CHIEF IS CEO OF A MULTIMILLION DOLLAR ORGANIZATION, WHICH OVERSEES HUNDREDS OF STAFF AND MILLIONS EXCUSE AND MILLIONS OF TAXPAYER DOLLARS AND MANAGES THOUSANDS OF PHYSICAL RESOURCES.
WHAT IN YOUR BACKGROUND MAKES YOU QUALIFIED TO SERVE AT THIS LEVEL? PLEASE PROVIDE SPECIFIC DETAILS.
WHENEVER I WAS CHIEF DETECTIVES, UH, WE HAD SEVERAL MILLION DOLLAR BUDGET.
AND WHENEVER I WAS CHIEF OF STAFF, JUST, UH, AT THE VERY END, UM, THEN I WAS OVER THE WHOLE EVERYTHING.
AND THE BUDGET IS KIND OF ODD BECAUSE YOU'LL HAVE MONEY IN ONE PLACE THAT SHOULDN'T BE IN ONE PLACE, BUT IT'S A KIND OF WORK SITUATION TO TRY TO GET IT OUTTA THAT SITU, THAT PLACE AND PUT IT IN A PLACE THAT'S NEEDED.
SO THAT'S ONE THING THAT I WOULD LIKE TO TRY STRAIGHTEN OUT.
BUT A LOT OF PEOPLE DON'T REALIZE THE BOUNDARIES.
POLICE DEPARTMENT HAS A PERSON ASSIGNED, UH, FROM THE FINANCE DEPARTMENT.
WE ACTUALLY HAVE A PERSON ASSIGNED TO THE POLICE DEPARTMENT.
AND I WOULD LEAN ON THAT PERSON A WHOLE LOT ON WHAT THEY COULD DO FOR US.
WHENEVER SOMETHING LIKE THAT COMES ALONG.
UH, THAT CONCLUDES THE QUESTION PORTION OF THE INTERVIEW.
YOU NOW HAVE TWO MINUTES TO MAKE A CLOSING STATEMENT.
WHENEVER IT'S GETTING CLOSE TO TIME FOR ME TO RETIRE, UH, THE CHIEF CAME TO ME AND HE ASKED ME IF I WOULD STAY
[03:05:01]
LONGER.I SAID, AND I WAS CHIEF DETECTIVE SAYS, NO, CHIEF.
I SAID, BUT THE WAY OUR RETIREMENT SYSTEM IS, IF I STAY ONE DAY LONGER, I'D LOSE INTEREST.
AND IN MY CASE, IT HAD BEEN $65,000.
I SAID, I JUST CAN'T DO IT, CHIEF.
AND HE SAID, WHAT IF I MADE YOU DEPUTY CHIEF, CHIEF OF STAFF? I SAID, WOW, THAT'S A HECK OF AN HONOR.
AND I SAID, BUT STILL, I'M JUST GONNA HAVE TO PASS ON IT.
HE SAID, WELL, I'LL STILL MAKE YOU DEPUTY CHIEF.
I LEARNED SO MUCH FROM THE MAN AND I REALLY WISH I HAD A CHANCE TO STAY THERE LONGER TO ACTUALLY GET SOME THINGS DONE THAT I WANTED TO GET DONE.
AND UNFORTUNATELY I WASN'T AT THAT POSITION UNTIL RIGHT BEFORE I LEFT.
I PUT MY LIFE BACK INTO THE BATON ROUGE POLICE DEPARTMENT AND BACK INTO THE CITY.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, IN THE AUDIENCE AND AT HOME.
THAT CONCLUDES OUR INTERVIEWS FOR THIS EVENING.
I'M GOING TO, UH, MAKE A MOTION THAT WE GOING TO EXECUTIVE SESSION TO DISCUSS, UH, SOME THINGS IN THE PERSONNEL FILES THAT WE WERE TOLD WE COULDN'T.
CAN YOU SAY SOMETHING? COME ON.
JUST FOR, FROM A PROCEDURAL PERSPECTIVE, BEFORE YOU ALL MOVE INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION, I WANTED TO, UM, REMIND YOU ALL THAT WE DID AMEND THE AGENDA FOR THE REMAINING PORTION, UM, UP TONIGHT'S, UM, AGENDA ITEMS. AND IT HAS BEEN POSTED, UM, TO THE EXTERIOR OF THE COUNCIL CHAMBER AS OF FRIDAY AT FIVE 30.
BUT I WANTED TO BRING IT TO YOUR ATTENTION SO YOU CAN MAKE A MOTION.
IS THERE A MOTION TO ADOPT THE AMENDED AGENDA? I MOVE.
SO MOVE BY MR. MCCALLAN, SECONDED BY MS. CALWELL.
ANY OBJECTIONS? MS. CALWELL, YOU WANT TO MAKE A QUESTION? NO.
UH, ARE THERE ANY COMMENTS FROM THE, THE, THE PUBLIC BEFORE WE GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION? ANY COMMENTS FROM THE PUBLIC? COME ON, MS. MERCANTILE.
I DO WANT TO COMMENT WHAT YOU SAID.
I'M GOING TO ADDRESS IT FURTHER LATER ON.
BUT I'M BRINGING THAT TO Y'ALL'S ATTENTION THAT I DO NOT BELIEVE IT WAS DONE UNDER OPEN MEETING LAW.
IS THERE ANYONE ELSE HERE WISHING TO SPEAK ON THE MEETING THIS EVENING? I MAKE A MOTION TO GO INTO EXECUTIVE SESSION.
IS THERE A SECOND? I MAKE A MOTION.
OBJECTION OR ADJOURNED TO XAVIER SESSION COMING RIGHT BACK.
OCTOBER 25TH ARE MORSE L MCNEELY.
UM, THAT IS THE 26TH, EXCUSE ME.
WEDNESDAY IS A COUNCIL MEETING.
UH, DANTE, IF YOU'RE WATCHING AND LESLIE, CAN YOU PLEASE NOTIFY THOSE INDIVIDUALS THAT THEY WILL BE INTERVIEWED ON THURSDAY IN ADDITION TO THAT? CAN I SEE HENDERSON? LEMME SEE THAT I HAVE NO HENDERSON IN MY HENDERSON.
IF YOU'RE LISTENING, T HENDERSON, HE'S HERE.
WE DON'T HAVE ANY OF YOUR INFORMATION IN OUR FOLDER.
CAN YOU GET THAT TO US? NO, NO, NO, NO.
MOST PEOPLE I THINK KEEP IT SOME OF YEAH.
BUT THERE'S, THERE'S SOME INFORMATION MISSING FROM YOUR APPLICATION.
THERE'S SOME INFORMATION MISSING FROM YOUR APPLICATION, SO YEAH.
SO WE CAN SEE YOUR, SOME PEOPLE HAVE, LIKE MS. CARDWELL DIDN'T HAVE ANY INFORMATION ABOUT YOU, BUT THAT'S NOT YOUR FAULT.
THAT'S, THAT'S NOT YOUR FAULT.
AND I DON'T THINK I HAVE IT ALL.
MR. BRINA HAS, GO AHEAD MR. BRINA.
SO YOU, AND THIS AGAIN, MIGHT BE IN THE BEHIND THE SCENES.
'CAUSE WE HAVE THE ONLY INFORMATION THAT I HAD IN MY PACKET WAS, UH, AUGUST, 2019 TO JUNE, 2020.
AND THEN BEFORE THAT JUNE, 2018 TO AUGUST, 2019.
AND THEN IT'S, UH, EDUCATION AND RESUME AFTER THAT.
SO ONLY THREE PAGE, BUT PAGE FOUR AND FIVE LOOKS LIKE THEY'RE,
[03:10:01]
THEY'RE OUT OF OUR PACKET.SO WE ARE GONNA GET WITH, UH, THE ADMINISTRATION TO SEE IF WE CAN GET YOUR ENTIRE, YOUR ENTIRE PACKET SO WE CAN REVIEW IT.
I DON'T, I DON'T HAVE WHEN YOU SAY ENTIRE PACKET, YOU REFERRING SPECIFICALLY TO THE RESUME OR MORE DATA TO ALL OF THE PAGES THAT WERE SUBMITTED? IT LOOKS LIKE AS IF THOUGH YOU SUBMITTED A PACKET OF INFORMATION AND THERE'S SOME PAGES MISSING AND WE ALL DIDN'T GET THE PAGES IN THE BINDER AND MS. CALWELL DIDN'T GET ANY PAGES IN HER BINDER.
SO WE'RE GETTING WITH THE MAYOR'S ADMINISTRATION TO SEE WHERE THOSE PAGES ARE LOCATED.
'CAUSE I DON'T THINK IT'S YOUR FAULT IF YOU SUBMITTED EVERYTHING.
INCLUDING THE STUFF THAT Y'ALL ASKED FOR.
FRI WELL, I DON'T KNOW IF IT WAS Y'ALL THAT ASKED FOR IT FRIDAY, BUT THE WHOEVER ASKED FOR IT FRIDAY, I SUBMITTED THAT AND, UM, GAVE THOSE DISCLOSURES AND EVERYTHING.
SO I CONFIRMED WITH THEM VIA EMAIL THAT I HAD GIVEN THEM ENOUGH TO CONTINUE THE PROCESS.
AND IT MAY NOT HAVE JUST GOTTEN TO THE COMMITTEE, BUT I WANT TO MAKE THAT PUBLIC STATEMENT THAT, UH, WE WANT TO GET ALL OF THE INFORMATION SO WE CAN REVIEW IT BEFORE, UH, ANNOUNCING THE INTERVIEW DATE.
WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE IF I SEE SOMEBODY'S BOOK AND MAYBE I CAN SEE WHAT'S MISSING? SURE.
BUT I'M NOT REALLY SURE WHAT FIVE.
BRING TO THE CIVIL SERVICE APPLICATION.
I DON'T HAVE PAGE FOUR AND FIVE.
WE DON'T HAVE YOUR RESUMES IN THERE TOO.
THAT'S HOW YEAH, PLEASE SEND IT TO LESLIE.
LESLIE, WHERE DOES HE SEND IT INFORMATION TO? OKAY.
DO YOU HAVE HER? DO YOU HAVE HER? YEAH.
SO AGAIN, FOR THURSDAY, OCTOBER 26TH.
WE'RE GONNA GO IN ALPHABETIC ORDER.
WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW MCCARLEY.
MCNEELY, MORRIS, AND THEN POLITO.
MCNEELY, THEN MORRIS, THEN POLITO.
WE'RE GONNA INTERVIEW ON THURSDAY, BEGINNING AT 5:00 PM THANK YOU ALL.
WHO VISITED WITH US TODAY? THANK YOU ALL FOR, UH, WATCHING AT HOME.
I NEED, AT THIS TIME, I NEED TO ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO DELETE ITEM FOUR.
SO MOVED BY MR. MCCLENNAN, SECOND BY MS. VICTORIAN.
AND ITEM FIVE, WE DID ITEM FIVE, WHICH WAS A DISCUSSION AND WHO WE WERE GONNA INTERVIEW ON, UH, OCTOBER 26TH.
AND WE NEED TO DELETE ITEM SIX.
UH, THAT'S THE DISCUSSION AND THE, UH, FOR WHO WE'RE GOING TO INTERVIEW ON NOVEMBER 1ST.
WE NEED TO PUT THAT ON THE AGENDA FOR NEXT MEETING.
SO IS THERE A MOTION TO DELETE ITEM SIX? I HAVE A MOTION TO DELETE ITEM SIX.
UH, NOW ANYBODY WISHING TO COMMENT ON ANY OF THE MEETING TODAY? MS. AL, SOME OF Y'ALL KNOW THAT I'M HEAVILY INVOLVED IN THE COMMUNITY, HEAVILY INVOLVED WITH THE POLICE IN DOWNTOWN.
CAN YOU TURN YOUR MICROPHONE HEAVILY INVOLVED WITH THE POLICE IN DOWNTOWN BATON ROUGE.
FRIDAY NIGHT, I WAS ON GOVERNMENT STREET IN DOWNTOWN UNTIL TWO 30 SATURDAY MORNING.
I WAS DEALING WITH A COMPLAINT THAT CAME FROM THE MAYOR, THE CHIEF DOWN TO, UH, BILL CLARA, DOWN TO OUR, UH, OFFICER BLAKE DOWNTOWN, DEALING WITH TWO STREET PEOPLE DOWNTOWN WHO WERE CREATING ALL KINDS OF ISSUES DOWNTOWN.
THEY WERE AT MY HOUSE TO HELP THEM GET OUT OF BATON ROUGE WHERE THEY HAD A HOME TO GO TO.
THIS MORNING AT ONE 30, I WAS ON MY FRONT PORCH TALKING TO OUR OFFICER ABOUT, UH,
[03:15:01]
A MOTHER WHO'D APPROACHED ME WHOSE DAUGHTER PLAYS BASKETBALL AT LSU AND SHE'S HAVING PROBLEMS AROUND HER HOUSE AS WELL AS ANOTHER PERSON WHO CONTACTED ME ABOUT SOMEONE WITH MENTAL ISSUES, DRUGS AND GUNS, NEEDING SOME DIRECTION FROM THE POLICE.THE REASON I TELL Y'ALL THIS IS THAT GIVES ME A LOT OF MORE INSIGHT THAN MAYBE A LOT ANY OTHER PERSON OUT ON THE STREET.
Y'ALL HAD SOME GOOD INTERVIEWS HERE TODAY.
THERE WERE SOME PEOPLE THAT WERE BETTER AT STANDING ON THEIR FEET AND ANSWERING QUESTIONS THAN MAYBE OTHERS WERE, BUT JUST BECAUSE Y'ALL GOT THOSE ANSWERS, THEY SOUNDED GOOD.
THERE WERE A LOT OF ANSWERS THAT WERE GIVEN TO Y'ALL THAT JUST WERE NOT CORRECT.
I'M JUST KIND OF CURIOUS IF ANY OF Y'ALL ARE GOING TO BE IN DOING ANY BACK CHECKING TO SEE IF THE ANSWERS Y'ALL WERE GETTING WERE CORRECT.
I'M A BIG ADVOCATE OF 21ST CENTURY CREEK POLICING.
ONE OF THE THINGS IN 21ST CENTURY POLICING IS THE QUALITY OF THE POLICE THAT YOU ARE HIRING IN YOUR DEPARTMENT.
LAST WEEK, 21ST CENTURY POLICING CAME OUT WITH PEOPLE YOU ABSOLUTELY DO NOT HIRE.
I HEARD WHAT SHE SAID ABOUT DOMESTIC VIOLENCE.
IF A PERSON'S GOT ANY HISTORY OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AND THEIR BACKGROUND, WHETHER THEY CONVICTED OR NOT, THEY ARE NOT, SHOULD NOT BE A POLICEMAN.
PEOPLE WITH ALCOHOLISM SHOULD NOT BE A POLICE.
THIS ATTITUDE OF INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY, THAT'S A LOW STANDARD FOR A POLICE OFFICER.
IT CAN'T JUST BE THAT STANDARD.
WE HAVE SOME PROBLEMS IN OUR DEPARTMENT, BUT WE HAVE HIRED SOME PEOPLE THAT DON'T EVEN FIT 21ST CENTURY CENTURY POLICING STANDARD.
THIS IS SOMETHING THE NEW CHIEFS ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DEAL WITH.
WE'RE GETTING HIT WITH, WITH SUIT AFTER SUIT, AND I THINK WE'RE GOING TO HAVE MORE OF IT.
WHEN I'VE ASKED QUESTIONS TO EVEN SOME OF THE CANDIDATES ABOUT HOW THIS IS HAPPENING, WHAT I AM TOLD IS THEY WILL GIVE ME THE ANSWERS AFTER NOVEMBER.
Y'ALL THINK LONG AND HARD ABOUT WHOEVER YOU CHOOSE TO BE A POLICE CHIEF WHERE WE CAN GET THINGS BACK RIGHTED AND GET OFFICERS WHO JUST HAD ANOTHER ONE HE QUIT FOR RAPING SOMEONE WHILE ON DUTY.
Y'ALL PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT Y'ALL ARE DOING HERE TO GET US A CHIEF THAT GETS THINGS RIGHTED AGAIN.
IS THERE ANYONE ELSE HERE WISHING TO SPEAK ON THE MEETING THIS EVENING? AT THIS TIME? I'LL ENTERTAIN.
AND AGAIN, IT IS A QUICK QUESTION.
THREE MM-HMM,
UM, I THOUGHT ON THE AGENDA THEY WERE TALKING ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT THEY WERE GONNA, OR Y'ALL WERE GONNA INTERVIEW CERTAIN PEOPLE OR, UM, DECIDE NOT TO INTERVIEW IT.
WAS THAT ADDRESSED AT ALL TODAY? NO.
WE DELETED THAT ITEM FROM THE AGENDA.
ANYONE ELSE HERE WISHING TO SPEAK ON THE MEETING? ALRIGHT, I'LL ENTERTAIN THE MOTION TO ADJOURN.