Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn has contract extended
From Fox6Now.com
Quote:
WITI-TV, MILWAUKEE—
Milwaukee's police chief has faced recent criticism, but Thursday night, he received praise, and a contract extension.
"I am deeply grateful for this vote of confidence. I can't tell you what it means to me," Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn said.
Choked up and emotional, Milwaukee's top cop reacted Thursday to city leaders extending his contract for another four years.
"I just felt it all welling up inside me. A sense of relief, as well as gratitude for how I've been treated here," Chief Flynn said.
Earlier Thursday, Chief Flynn took part in a closed-door meeting to evaluate his performance, but lately, he's dealt with some public criticism. His department has been accused by some of showing up late to crime scenes, hours after a call for help.
"I believe there are some residents that, I believe, are getting, I guess, discouraged about calling the police at all, because of, I guess, this kind of response time," one citizen said.
Flynn argues since he became chief in 2008, the median response for all calls increased by three minutes and 15 seconds, and times for highest priority, life-threatening situations increased by only 33 seconds.
"He's doing the best for the community with the tools that he has to work with," another citizen said.
Chief Flynn says increased times are due in part to his proactive approach of positioning officers in areas to suppress and prevent crime. As a result, Chief Flynn admits there can be delays in responding to non-emergency calls, but the approach has resulted in a 27 percent decrease in reported violent crime, and a 22 percent decrease in overall reported crime since 2007.
"How long I stay, at this part of my life, is not a function of some other department. This is the police department that is going to be my legacy," Chief Flynn said.
As a result of the decision, Chief Flynn will be sworn-in inside the council chamber on January 6th.
