New Chief
Insiders who expected Mayor White to name someone from within HPD as chief got a surprise today:
Mayor Bill White will announce today that he has selected Phoenix Police Chief Harold L. Hurtt, a career law-enforcement officer, to become Houston's new police chief.It would have been nice to see a little more detail about the new chief, but I suppose there's plenty of time for that.The appointment, to be announced at 10 a.m., surprised those who had expected White to select one of several candidates from within the Houston Police Department.
White's spokesman, Frank Michel, confirmed the appointment, but said neither he nor White would discuss the decision before this morning's announcement. Hurtt, who did not return calls seeking comment, was introduced to the department's command staff in a closed meeting at HPD headquarters late Thursday afternoon.
Hurtt, 57, called Phoenix City Manager Frank Fairbanks around 6 p.m. Thursday to report that he had accepted the Houston job. Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon said Hurtt told him that he had been recruited to interview for the post.
White passed over several local candidates, including members of the HPD's command staff, considered strong contenders for the job. Among those candidates were acting Police Chief Joe Breshears and executive assistant chiefs Dennis Storemski and Tim Oettmeier. Breshears, who became chief after Clarence Bradford's resignation in September, declined interview requests Thursday night.
White's decision to recruit Hurtt may reflect a desire to bring new life into a department embarrassed by several controversies in recent years, including police shootings of unarmed teenagers, the closure of its crime lab amid charges of incompetence, and a botched mass arrest in a Kmart parking lot that resulted in lawsuits against the city.
Hurtt spent 30 of his 36 years in law enforcement with the Phoenix Police Department, where he worked his way up from patrol officer to police chief. He earned strong reviews from his bosses and employees.
"Houston will be getting one of the top law-enforcement chiefs in the country," Gordon said from Phoenix. "His strongest legacy here (is) a department where the community wants to see the officers in their neighborhoods and not try to keep them out."
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 02/27/04 06:44 | Houston | Technorati
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Two thoughts:
The naming of an outsider to the job is great. The department needs some new blood after a long string of insiders. However, being an outsider places a premium on the new chief's management and political skills. He'll have to move quickly and be decisive or the bureaucracy and insider network can eat him up. Look for changes in the second tier command staff. The paradox it that he will need these experienced insiders to help him hit the groud running.
Posted by cato @ 09:36 on 02/27/04
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