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by Paul Bass | Feb 24, 2010 1:38 pm

(14) Comments | Commenting has been closed | E-mail the Author

Posted to: Legal Writes

Paul Bass Photo As James Lewis prepares to hand off the police chief’s badge, he has some unfinished business to go along with it.

Lewis (pictured) ends his 20-month term as police chief Friday. He returns to his home outside Black Creek, Wisconsin, where he can “only see two or three neighbors,” but where he and his wife will be close to their son, daughter, and grandchildren.

Assistant Chief Stephanie Redding will take over as acting chief. Mayor John DeStefano said Wednesday he has identified a few finalists for the permanent job, but he doesn’t expect to name a successor over the next week or to have someone start work before April.

New Haven has treated Lewis this week to continual thank-yous and farewell bashes for turning around a once scandal-plagued department—slashing crime 10 percent, disciplining wayward officers, undertaking a detailed reorganization designed by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), and in general restoring pride and credibility to the force. Click here and here to read about Lewis’s accomplishments.

Reflecting on his tenure here in an interview in his third-floor 1 Union Ave. office, Lewis said he enjoyed his time here. He called both the rank and file as well as the community enthusiastic partners in helping him and two temporary assistant chiefs make the city safer during what was always intended to be a short-term gig.

“This was an easy 20 months,” he said. Ninety percent of the employees knew the problems. They used PERF as their mechanism to get people [to pay attention]. People treated us well inside the police department and outside the police department.” He said he met “no resistance.”

That doesn’t mean New Haven put all its public-safety or departmental challenges behind it, Lewis said. The next chief has work to do that he didn’t get around to.

“There’s a lot of stuff we haven’t touched,” Lewis said. He ticked off examples:

• Developing a bench. Two assistant chiefs who came with Lewis from California, Roy Brown and Kenneth Gillespie, are leaving with him. A third assistant chief, Pete Reichard, retired Feb. 1. That leaves only Stephanie Redding, the assistant chief about to become acting chief, handling what used to be five people’s jobs. And she didn’t apply to become chief. All the finalists come from out of town. The department still lacks a deep A team.

“We haven’t spent the money to develop our managers like we should,” Lewis said.

He said he has started trying to do that. Five managers went to a PERF training seminar, another to an FBI course. District managers and other lieutenants went to a community policing seminar in Boston. “We wanted to expose them to something other than New Haven” in terms of how departments operate, Lewis said.

• Reaching the small number of teens responsible for causing most of the mayhem in town. With the help in part of drug forfeiture money, Lewis boosted the department’s support for programs the keep kids off the street and in productive places: He kept a Saturday YMCA program open, expanded the Police Athletic League, boosted the number of cops in schools. But the hard-core kids already in trouble haven’t been reached, he said. The cops need to do more, he said—and so do others in town.

“We’re not effective at identifying the kids who are in trouble,” he said. “I attended a lot of meetings where people talked about doing things for kids. There wasn’t a lot of follow-through. That is New Haven—not a lot of follow-through” with kids.

• Case-tracking. The department has been slow to put software into place to keep on top of investigations, Lewis said.

• Tracking citizen complaints. Similarly, Lewis said, the department needs to get software up and working to keep on top of internal affairs cases. The department recently trained people to use it. The idea is to catch “red flags” for potential problem officers.

• Video cameras in patrol cars. Most departments New Haven’s size have them, Lewis said. It’ll cost $400,000 to $500,000 to fully equip New Haven’s fleet, he said, but it needs to be done.

• Wrestle with budget realities. New Haven has protected the police and fire departments from budget cuts. That can’t last forever, Lewis noted: Cities across the country are slashing their budgets. And you can cut libraries and parks only so much before looking at previously protected portions of city government, he noted.

Mayor DeStefano Wednesday noted another challenge he’s putting on the next chief’s to-do list: strengthen the department’s detective unit, aka the Investigative Services Division (ISD).

That’s the umbrella for four sub-units: major crimes, special investigations, tactical narcotics, and investigative support.

Those four all reported to Assistant Chief Reichard.

Strengthening ISD wasn’t a priority in the PERF report. Now it’s time to focus on it, DeStefano said.

Chief Lewis said he has met with “all” the finalists for his job, including having “lunch or dinner” with the candidates “and their wives.”

DeStefano said he hopes to begin a background check on a finalist “within the next one to two weeks.” After that check, a chosen candidate would need some time to finish up his current job.

Neither he nor Lewis would identify the finalists. One is believed to be a former New York City precinct captain. Lewis said they all have strong backgrounds. He said he’s confident his successor will be up to the task of continuing the progress New Haven has made.

Lewis was asked what most surprised him about New Haven.

Answer: the shootings.

Not just the number but the type. New Haven had 149 reported shootings in 2009. It had 12 reported murders.

In other cities, especially those with more formal gangs, a far higher percentage of shootings are homicides, he said. Here, plugging a bullet in someone’s body can almost be an afterthought.

“In east L.A. [where he previously worked] we didn’t have kids riding bicycles shooting people,” Lewis said.

Shaking his head, he told the story of one New Haven man who was shot by a bike-riding teen.

“He gives up his wallet. He doesn’t fight the guy. [The teen] shoots him in the leg anyway. He said, ‘I got this out anyway. I might as well use it.’ It’s almost a joke.”

Comments

posted by: Nan Bartow on February 24, 2010 2:02pm

I hope that New Haven takes Chief Lewis’s To-Do list seriously and sets to work accomplishing the tasks that our departing chief has laid out.
Do so will honor him and thank him for the serious work that he has accomplished. It will make New Haveners safer and happier, and all of us, including Chief Lewis, will be proud.

posted by: Street Outreach Worker Program - Hello?! on February 24, 2010 2:28pm

Prior to Chief Lewis’ arrival, the city rolled out the Street Outreach Worker Program, which focuses only on the hardest to reach population of kids. It has been tremendously successful, as evidenced by reports here and in the Register and the drop in violent crimes among youth. I note that the program was started before this new Sheriff hit town so he can’t publicly tout is as his success, but that is no reason to be so dismissive about it. Have some respect, Chief.

Finally, I note that the love for the Chief and the PDAs have not extended to communities of color in New Haven. .... I hope the new Chief shows a higher level of respect for community policing, initiatives that are not his own, and the people of color of the city, who happen to be in the majority.

posted by: john on February 24, 2010 2:45pm

@SOWP-H? : “... but that is no reason to be so dismissive about it. Have some respect, Chief.”

Perhaps the program you mention was effective. But where above is the chief “so dismissive” about it? Perhaps you mean in general. But can we really attribute the drop in crime to the SOWP? Maybe, but I’d love to see numbers that confirm it.

“I note that the love for the Chief and the PDAs have not extended to communities of color in New Haven [...] who happen to be in the majority.”

I assume you mean by this that the communities of color in NH have not liked the chief as much as those of us who lack sufficient melanin. Maybe. But can you be so sure about your claim? And are you sure you mean “communities” of color, or do you really mean just one? (Because it is just possible that the widely divergent communities of color here feel differently.) In any case, I fail to see how, e.g., the black community, which is so disproportionately affected by gun violence would *not* love a Chief under whose tenure such a drastic drop in crime occurred. Was it the traffic stops? Well, we’ve seen how effective those have been at getting guns off the streets: very.

Understand that I’m not being dismissive, just curious. But I will note that you were quite dismissive of Chief Lewis’s efforts, despite your apparent wish to have effective contributions appreciated.

posted by: K on February 24, 2010 2:56pm

Let’s pray that things stay on course, and that NH doesn’t fall back. Let’s get some really excellent replacements in, who really care and who really work hard.

posted by: Nan on February 24, 2010 3:02pm

Hello, Street Outreach Worker, I, for one, appreciate the important work that you do with the hard-to-reach youth population in New Haven. Please come back to our WEB (Whalley-Edgewood-Beaver Hills) Management Team meetings and tell us more about your ongoing work. You will find a warm welcome and an appreciative audience.

posted by: NEW_HAVEN_RESIDENT on February 24, 2010 3:03pm

Like we all say, “Good things do not last for ever”. Chief Lewis did a good job in New Haven in his short period of time.

As a New Haven resident, I am greatful for his well done job.

posted by: SW on February 24, 2010 5:46pm

Well, I would like to say that it is nice that the cops try to identify and help the so-called “at-risk youth” element, but in their defense, that is not a job that they are best-suited to. Cops Are Not Social Workers!

That’s a problem of mission-creep that distracts too many officers from other more pressing issues.

If local citizens and government ever agree that we really care about crime, and therefore by default that we should care about “at-risk youth,” we could probably handle the problem better by employing an amazing concept called “specializaiton of labor.” It means that we send social-worker types to go help youth and let the cops be worried about the remainder of the crime.

Of course, then, ignorants, selfish people and Republicans will accuse you of being a natural-born communist if you support such “increased government.”

posted by: CITYSAVIOR on February 24, 2010 9:58pm

Thank you Chief Lewis and Gillespie for showing our new haven officers how to police again. If the city didn’t fast track the wrong supervisors by sending them to the FBI academy then losing them the city police department would be in better shape today. The department needs to start now with the new chief. A leader has to have integrity and come to work every day. the officers/detectives need to understand from their leader what the vision is. Right now the two major department(Detectives and patrol) in the police are both with out leaders. In order to function properly both must have strong leadership. IS THE NEW CHIEF TAKING NOTE OF THIS? GOD BLESS ARE HARD WORKING MEN AND WOMEN OF THE NEW HAVEN POLICE DEPARTMENT.

posted by: bjfair on February 25, 2010 11:38am

I appreciate most of what the chief and assistant chief tried to do and was successful at doing. I pray that some of that work will not be undermined once their gone. I especially like that he was able to see the problems outside and within the department.I appreciate that he felt working in New Haven was an easy task despite how dangerous some people would like to project. Are there some dangerous people in the city? Yes but the reality is there are a few people committing a great deal of crime. Most New Haveners are hard working people trying to survive. I appreciate that he saw the need to train and retrain officers and get rid of the troubled ones.I appreciate that he utilized money seized in the community and used it helping and supporting youth. On the flip side, I wish he had not pushed for bigger guns, dogs and excessive traffic stops because they go against community policing which is very much needed in this city and I wish he had initiated the tracing of guns being brought into the community and push for prosecution of those providing the guns to our children. I wish he and his family well as he returns home and I pray for a replacement from within the NHPD. It’s difficult to believe that there isn’t anyone within the department who can’t do a great job leading; someone who believes in the sucess and effectiveness of community policing and someone who has paid their dues to the community.

posted by: Mister Jones on February 25, 2010 12:05pm

Nice article Paul. This is exactly the kind of in-depth article you don’t see anywhere else.

posted by: A View from behind the curtain @ 1 Union Avenue on February 28, 2010 5:25pm

**This is my second comment I have posted on this article. The first never ran because Mr. Bass felt there were “Personal Attacks” that should not run. Let’s see how I do this time.**
When I read the article, I was struck by how casually both Lewis and DeStefano talked about the “To-Do List” for the next Chief. It appears that they did not comprehend the PERF Report. I read it. Several times. All the way through to the end (nearly 100 pages).
When the city was searching for their next Chief, which ended with Lewis’ selection, the PERF Report was trumpeted as the “Playbook” for the NHPD. I’m sure anyone who interviewed for the position was well aware of the report’s existence and how it would influence their direction as Chief.
His first decision was to bring to the NHPD two cops he knew and had worked with, as Assistant Chiefs. This was called for in the PERF Report. However, the report strongly advised to bring an outsider with extensive investigatory and administrative experience as the A.C. for ISU. He ignored that advice. One went to I.A. (as advised) and the other went to Patrol. Patrol never had an A.C. and the Division was spared most of the criticisms/suggestions in the report.
In this article, Lewis said the new Chief will have to develop a bench. The two A.C.‘s he brought with him are gone, and a majority of the experienced Senior Supervisors in the department opted to retire. Lewis took the bench with him!
DeStefano claimed that ISU was not a priority in the PERF Report. He must have missed those 24 pages. A key element of the ISU review was the lack of Case Tracking, which Lewis said is on the “To-Do List”.. That was front and center in the report’s suggestions. But, that’s for the next Chief.
When the PERF Report looked into I.A., the need to track citizen’s complaints was stressed as an area the NHPD had been sub-standard. That is now on the “To-Do List” as well. The A.C. for that division was tasked with re-writing the NHPD’s General Orders, Rules and Regulations, as well as Training Bulletins. The PERF Report correctly noted how many were far outdated and that a Police Organization needs clear, concise, and current Written Orders.
This assignment was farmed out to NHPD Supervisors, who each individually researched and re-wrote these documents. They were then forwarded to the A.C., who then submitted them to Corporation Counsel for review. With dozens of different people authoring these documents, there has to be a varying degrees of clarity aand consistency in the work.

So, in the end, the buck stops with the Chief and the Mayor. If the PERF Report was the “Gospel” on what was needed to right the ship at NHPD, and so many of the issues have been left for the next Chief, how successful was this Chief?
Before he came here, the NHPD ran with one Chief and two A.C.‘s. Then, as Lewis made his entrance, the NHPD had only an “Acting Chief”. As he rides off into the sunset, there is only an “Acting Chief”, and a new Chief on his way, with a PERF Report to guide him.
The more things change, the more they stay the same.
*If this does run with editing by Mr. Bass, I hope it is noted on the posting.*

posted by: Anon on March 1, 2010 10:21am

To Behind the curtain,

I think you bring up good points. I had no idea that reforms at I.A. were so far down the To-Do list. I thought that they had been implemented.

If citizens are still at the bottom of the totem pole in terms of the department for taking citizen complaints, what can we expect?

As far as personal attacks, will it be considered a personal attack if I say I don’t have faith in Stephanie Redding’s leadership? She is acting chief, has been acting chief in the past and is an assistant chief.

She is a public figure AND on the public payroll, so I hope I can comment on her.

Her husband Patrick Redding headed up I.A. just before PERF came in, and I am critical of his work there too. It is my strong impression that he operated in that position with the notion that it was his job to prevent complainants from filing complaints and to get the complaints dismissed when they did.

posted by: A View from behind the curtain @ 1 Union Avenue on March 1, 2010 4:24pm

Two more points that I omitted from my comments.
Lewis would lead the readers to believe that sending NHPD Supervisors to Perf Training and the FBI Academy did not occur prior to his arrival. PERF Training has been occurring for at least five years, and there is a long history of NHPD attending the FBI Academy.

The PERF Report told the NHPD to have a structure of one Chief and four Assistant Chiefs. Up until about five years ago, the NHPD had one Chief and one Assistant Chief; then a second was added. For a Department this size, one and four seems a little excessive. PERF (a.k.a. the “Police Executive Re-Location Firm) also made it clear to the City that they must increase the Chief’s salary or the qualified candidates would not apply. So, Lewis got a salary in the $140,000+ neighborhood. This was higher, by at least 30%, over the previous Chief’s salary.
When you factor in the salary for Lewis for the 20 months, along with the two added A.C.‘s for 18 months or so, along with the price of the original PERF Report, and then PERF’s contract for recruiting Lewis and now his replacement, the City of New Haven has shelled out about $700,000. For a job half done and the bench cleared; back to square one.

posted by: Anon on March 2, 2010 1:47pm

Behind the curtain, I have a more mixed perspective. I think we need someone like Lewis and if PERF funnels good candidates that’s fine with me.

I think we need four assistant chiefs because we need well-paid, brainie, people to stop the buck. Without them the buck will stop at an overworked Lt or Sgt who might hang up on you when you call or won’t be able to follow up on everything.

It’s been expensive and the PERF report was expensive and told city hall what it already knew. It gave a detailed report to City Hall of what none other than City Hall had meticulously and politically fostered and would again.

If the mayor wanted to throw a bunch of money at a problem he never wanted to deal with to begin with, I am not going to complain that much because the result is we have a rare hiatus right now from business as usual in New Haven.

If City Hall had been free to break up the systemic problems it knew existed AND if it had been ideologically predisposed to, which it wasn’t and isn’t—there are leftovers in City Hall who participated in the LAST big PD scandal—then it would have. It threw money at an outside consultant to wash its hands of, well, itself.

I am grateful for the results. It hasn’t been perfect. There are still dirty cops on the beat that City Hall and PD know about but protect because of liability issues. I also am not keen that IA hasn’t gotten through its To-Do list. And the potential of the civilian review board is suffocated by corp. counsel aka the mayor.

I am grateful for this hiatus and think we should enjoy getting to have a little faith in our PD for a change. It probably won’t last forever.

$140K a year salary for a chief is reasonable for a city with such horrendous crime problems, with so many crook politicians and officials and so many quirks and dysfunction.

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