New Denver Chief Wants Transparency, More Community Involvement
DENVER (CBS4/AP) - Denver's new police chief says he's going to work to improve community relations for a department plagued by a string of excessive force cases.
Robert White said he intends to work on the department's image in the community. He said he wants to show officers they are valued but demand that they respect the people in the communities where they work.
Mayor Michael Hancock announced White's appointment Friday. The 59-year-old has been chief of the Louisville, Ky., Metro Police Department since 2003.
A small crowd gathered at Denver's City and County Building on Saturday to greet and ask questions of White. Former Chief Gerald Whitman stood by as Hancock made the introduction.
"If the mayor says Chief White is best for the city, I totally support that decision," Whitman told CBS4.
White said he didn't leave Louisville because of any falling out, but that he was ready for change and this was an opportunity he couldn't pass up.
"I think this is a good police department. It's my responsibility to take it to the next level where it becomes a great police department," White said.
Hancock said White established a reputation for being able to turn around departments with low morale and challenges relationships with the community. He's known to be visible in the community and to hold his officers responsible for their actions.
"White has proven ability to transform police department culture," Hancock said.
White also has a reputation for being able to clean up a department's image -- excessive force cases over the years with Denver's police department have repeatedly damaged that image.
"It has to be an absolute collaborative relationship between the residents and the men and women of this department," White said. "I realize the two can become one if residents trust us, if they know us, if they believe in us, and if we treat them with dignity and respect."
White was asked if he thought there was an excessive force issue in Denver.
"To some degree I believe that is irrelevant if I believe that or not. There is a perception that there is one, so that has to be addressed," White said.
While White was Louisville's chief, he fired about 30 officers and disciplined more than 700.
White will be Denver's first black police chief and the first candidate to be hired from outside the department since the 1960s.
(TM and © Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2010 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
