Hiring the next CPD superintendent presents a dilemma
Common sense tells us the next top cop should come from inside-but maybe not
No one could fault Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson if he has had a couple of sleepless nights since winning the mayoral election April 4. The 47-year-old county commissioner assumes his new job in Mid-May. Not only will he be operating on the largest stage of his life; he also will have the eyes on the nation upon him-especially when it comes to naming the next superintendent of the Chicago Police Department (CPD).
Even though he will receive recommendations from the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability choosing the next superintendent won’t in any way be easy, especially since the commission will be conducting a nationwide search. And they will present only three possible candidates.
For some it might appear to be a no-brainer. Promote CPD First Deputy Eric Carter who was pegged to be acting superintendent after David Brown’s resignation. After all, has been the department’s number two guy for three years. Add to that that he has directed the bureaus of patrol, detectives, counter terrorism and special operations, and one might ask why not-especially given he has a trove of commendations. Conversely, Carter who has been on the force since 1992 has racked up 25 allegations for some sort of misconduct. Four were sustained, according to the CPD.
Many see outgoing Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s decision to pass over Carter and choose out-of-state replacements for Eddie Johnson,the superintendent she “inherited” as a statement about Carter’s ability. If anything, it proved to be lack of knowledge of how the department operates. CPD lost substantial institutional memory after several high-ranking cops opted to retire in protest after Lightfoot’s firing of Johnson.
The mayor stutter-stepped and chose a retired Los Angeles Police Chief-Charles Beck to head the department. The fact that he was already retired and had no history in Chicago sent a collective groan through the city. Beck was hired on an interim basis which raised the question of how much can any superintendent achieve in six months. He arrived with a bagful of cookie cutter crime-fighting strategies but not any that fit Chicago.
The mayor doubled down on her init1al gaffe by hiring another cop unfamiliar with CPD and Chicago. David Brown arrived here from Dallas, Texas and in his first news conference offered a heady promise about tamping down the murder rate. That target was blown out of the water in short order. Subsequently, Brown implemented what could have been called the plan-of-the-month strategy. Additionally, there was no shortage of Chicagoans reminding us that Brown was an import. Brown took the rank-and-file’s morale so low the police union issued a vote of no confidence in May 2021.
Given that Beck and Brown, along with other non-native cops who were brought in to lead the department have been busts, should guide Mayor-elect Johnson once he assumes office. Of course, the men and women in other parts of the country who apply for the superintendent’s job obviously believe they can do it. However, what is of paramount importance is do Chicagoans, particularly those working in the CPD believe those applicants can.
While there is a strong case for Carter to get the job (if the commission recommends him); there is an equally compelling case for the commission to find and recommend a candidate who aligns with the mayor’s traits-young and committed to doing things differently. The department sorely needs someone who is uber familiar with technology and won’t be ooohed and aaahed by vendors trying to foist the latest miracle crime fighting tool on CPD. At the same time, however, a younger superintendent must be able to immediately earn the respect and loyalty of the 11,000 sworn officers-no easy task. Hopefully younger fresh eyes and a contemporary mindset will be the catalyst to successfully usher in the changes long overdue in the CPD including removing the boulder of the federal consent decree under which the department has been operating under,
As a first time mayor, Johnson would be wise to seek the counsel of Mayor Muriel Bowser, who is in her third term as Mayor of D.C, along with mayors Vi Lyles of Charlotte, N.C. and Sharon West of Baton Rogue, La.-both two term mayors. The decision is too important to try to go it alone, or leaning on someone who has never been in his shoes.