Some Advice for the New Top Cop

January 8, 2008

Chicago News Department

Some Advice for the New Top Cop

Mark Draughn

Unless the City Council does something other than rubber-stamp the Mayor's nominee, former FBI agent Jody Weis will soon be the next police superintendent. As an observer and commentator and self-important blogger, I'd like to offer him the following advice:

Your initial top priority should be to eliminate corrupt cops. Indict them, fire them, or convince them to quit. Your commanders will say they can't afford to lose the manpower, but you'll get a lot more done when everyone is on the same side.
Use the money you would have paid the bad cops to give some overtime to patrol. Maybe use a little of it to repair some of Chicago's ancient police cars so the extra cops will have something to drive.
Speed up the investigation of all allegations of police misconduct. If the complaints are legitimate, the victims have a right to receive swift justice, and you need to show that police are not above the law. On the other hand, if the complaints are not legitimate, the officers have a right to be out from under the cloud of suspicion as quickly as possible.
When a cop is actually convicted of corruption, have someone make a big 8" by 10" photo of him and a sign explaining how he disgraced himself and post it in police headquarters where other cops will see it. A web page wouldn't hurt either. (TarnishedStar.com is available.)
You may know a lot about law enforcement, but as an FBI agent-in-charge you've never had to deal with some of the issues you'll be facing now, such as real estate, hiring, training, procurement, and union negotiation. You need to pick staff that understand these things, otherwise you'll be doomed.
You have no patrol experience, and a lot of people will tell you to do a few ride-alongs in police car to get an idea what it's like. It sounds like a good idea, but it's not. The ride-along will be stage-managed so you don't see a damned thing that's real. Also, right now you know you are ignorant about patrol, so you'll probably be careful and rely on your subordinates, but you could do an awful lot of damage if you start to think you understand patrol after a week of riding in a police car.
No matter how well you do this job, the powers-that-be within the City will force you out in a few years. There's nothing you can do to avoid this, so there's no point worrying about pissing people off. Screw them all, and make changes that you can be proud of.
Bust a few crooked politicians. Take over the investigations at the end and slap the cuffs on yourself. The rank and file will accuse you of grandstanding for the media, but it will keep a few cops out of the crosshairs after you're gone.
Focus on the most emportant part of police work, fighting serious crime, and let everything else slide.
No matter how tight your manpower, it's always worth assigning cops to clear the warrant backlog.
No matter how many cops you have available, it's always a waste of time to bust a restaurant for selling foie gras.
Use your SWAT teams to stop violent incidents, not to start them. Dynamic entry into a suspect's house may be a great way to gather drug evidence, but eventually one of your shooters is going to kill a 92-year-old grandmother or shoot a baby's fingers off. It's not worth the risk just to bag a few minor dealers.
Teach cops how to exploit an arrest. They haven't done their job unless they've looked up the offender's probation status, asked him about his associates, and asked him if he knows someone who has an illegal gun. Someone should also ask him if he knows any crooked cops, or if a cop has ever asked him for a bribe.
Speaking of bribes, you should offer rewards to cops for reporting bribe attempts. This doesn't have to cost money. The department can offer cops rewards that no criminal could ever match as a bribe, such as a bump in seniority when bidding for their next shift assignment. (I think CPD may already do this.)
If the department was a business, analysts would say that almost the entire value of the department consists of human capital, also known as trained and experienced people. Within the department, training should never stop.
At the low end, you need to make sure that training and mentoring skills are a requirement for promotion.
You also need to retain the people you've trained, so treat them well.
I don't know much about how the police contract works, but here's something you can give the working police without costing the city a dime: Eliminate the residency requirement. Let cops live in the suburbs and work in the city if that's what they want to do.
You need a training program at the high end too. The U.S. army trains its generals, and big companies often rotate their managers through all the major functions of the business before putting them in charge. No one should be considered ready for a top slot unless they've spent time in patrol, detectives, human resources, and internal affairs.