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Police chief finalists miscellany

We spent much of the day Monday digging into the history of Ken Miller and Lisa Womack, the two finalists to become the next police chief for the city of Greensboro.

We played phone tag much of the day, but did get a lot of useful information on both candidates, but were never able to get to the heart of the glaring question that stands out thus far:

What prompted Lisa Womack to resign from her post as the police chief in Elgin Ill.?

Regardless, here’s a round up of some of the things that people had to say about both candidates that we either found or were told from numerous interviews yesterday that didn't make the newspaper: 

- First, reporter Jennifer Fernandez heard back from Womack and received this statement about her candidacy for the Greensboro job:

“I am very excited about the possibility of serving as Greensboro's Police Chief. It is great city and wonderful community. I look forward to the opportunity”

- From Tim O’Neil, the attorney for the Elgin Police Union, said he found Womack “personally engaging” and that they had many great talks.

“But she didn’t understand that in Illinois, public employees have due process rights.” O’Neal said that caused issues within the department.

- Former Elgin City Council members John Walters and Juan Figueroa both told the Daily Herald, Elgin’s daily newspaper they had no serious problems with Womack during their time working with her in a March 31 article:

"The department remained very professional. She demanded, I thought, professionalism and I think she got it,” Walters told to the newspaper.

“She demands a lot from people. Some people like that, some people don't."

Figueroa told the newspaper officers told him Womack was a “tough” chief when she first started.

"When you hear that, it gives you an indication that she's making changes," Figueroa said.

Here’s a round up of what else we heard about Ken Miller, senior deputy police chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department:

From Robert Schurmeier, former interim police chief and former senior deputy police chief at the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department

“If things are running smoothly, I guess that’s Ok in his world, but he outdistances others in taking on difficult challenges.

“He had a lot of respect (among officers), mainly from the hardest working and industrious. That translates to people who aren’t hardworking and completely ethical should watch out.

“He’s capable of making hard choices and hold people accountable. He believes if you work for a week’s pay, you had better earn it. But he never held people to unreasonable standards.”

“I would consider him sort of the new generation of police executives. He’s tech-saavy, understands different concepts and will roll up his sleeves to solve things.”

From Andy Dulin, Charlotte City Council:

“He’s thorough, he’s a professional and he loves to be a cop.

“We’ve had police chiefs who were more on the administrative side who liked the way they looked in a suit. I think Ken Miller likes the way he looks in a police uniform and I think the rank and file like to work for a cop.”

Jerry Sennett, former deputy police chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department:

“He is pretty direct with people in letting them know where he stands. He puts in a lot of hours and wasn’t afraid to put in the long hours to become a high-ranking official in our department or a police chief.”

Otis Crowder, president of Crowder Construction:

“He’s very dedicated to the mission of the police department and seems to be a very good leader.

"I get a sense of respect from the people who deal with him in the police department.”

From former Charlotte mayor and former gubernatorial candidate Pat McCrory:

“”He had a good working relationship with the mayor and council. He was known for being very honest and ethical.”

From Ken Gill, president of CPI Security and director of the non-profit Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Foundation:

“He seems to be able to get things done without bias from folks. I’ve seen him tip toe around political situations and not get involved and do what is right for everybody.”
 

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