In an address delivered at his swearing in ceremony on Tuesday, newly-appointed New Orleans Police Department Superintendent Ronal Serpas sounded as though he’d practically lifted language off the pages of Citizen Crime Watch and NolaStat.

I was particularly surprised to read that Serpas was going to partner with educational institutions. A key focus of the Citizen Crime Watch effort to obtain crime data was the goal of creating a consortium of local university criminal justice programs to secure a cooperative data-sharing agreement with the NOPD. The research and educational needs of those programs would benefit from access to crime data. It should be noted that a number of local criminal justice professionals go through those programs.

There are plenty of good reasons why Serpas sounds like a NolaStat supporter.

First and foremost, many of the NolaStat performance management recommendations were conceived from first-hand experience. As a civilian technician supporting the NOPD COMSTAT process for three years, I enjoyed a front-row seat to weekly meetings, and observed how Chief Serpas governed a performance management process to create a more professional organization that strove for excellence in reducing crime, and that was more responsive and courteous to the public.

Secondly, members of the Mitch Landrieu’s police chief selection committee were sensitive to the need for independent auditing of crime statistics to ensure that crimes are properly reported and investigated, and to restore public confidence in the credibility of statistical claims.

Finally, Serpas himself acknowledged that he was reading the advocacy pieces written for Citizen Crime Watch and NolaStat.

At the risk of creating a laundry list of good things to expect from the NOPD, here are some key reform commitments made by Serpas at the swearing-in ceremony:

• “We will use the Community Policing Philosophy as implemented through Decentralized District based commands to fully implement our Crime Fighting and Quality of Life initiatives.”
• “Each Neighborhood deserves a police response tailored to its needs.”
• “We will instill three basic principles in our daily service to this great city. Accountability, Transparency and Collaboration.”
• “Professional treatment of our citizens in every encounter.”
• “Our Public Integrity Bureau and department will reflect and respect the joint efforts of the City’s Inspector General and the Independent Police Monitor.”
• “We will build and strengthen our partnerships with the FBI and U.S. Attorney to seek out and prosecute corrupt officers.”
• “I will call for an immediate audit of our crime reporting mechanisms by state and federal authorities.”
• “I will call for an immediate partnership with educational institutions to evaluate our computer systems that capture and report our crime data.”
• “We will immediately reevaluate the training of officers and supervisors in preparing police investigative reports and the proper classifying of those crime reports.”
• “We will immediately being crafting and implementing monthly audit systems.”
• “We will open for public inspection and regular review our crime reporting systems and data by external parties.”

One thing I’ve learned in my struggles with the previous mayor and police chief, is that challenge and adversity cultivates a creative problem-solving approach. The challenges that Ronal Serpas has confronted in his previous experience reforming the NOPD, and in his later experiences with the Washington State Police and Nashville Police Department, have no doubt, helped him advance his thinking about how to manage for excellence.

And so it is with the hope that he will succeed at creating a safer community, and with the expectation that he will fulfill his commitments to reform the NOPD, that I wish to offer to Ronal Serpas a very glad welcome home!

Chief Serpas’ full address:

Mister Mayor, members of the Council, members of the search committee, distinguished guests, friends, family and the men and women of the New Orleans Police Department… in the words of Satchmo, “I KNOW WHAT IT MEANS TO MISS NEW ORLEANS,”

Thank you for this opportunity, and this challenge, to come home and serve again. Nine years ago we were called away – today we have been called home.

As I reflected upon the words of Mayor Landrieu’s inaugural speech, his vision and understanding of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead is clear. His words should lift us all, both the Community and those of us in the New Orleans Police Department who serve with pride and dignity.

“There is nothing broken that cannot be fixed. No problem here that cannot be solved.”

Today I call upon each member of the New Orleans Police Department to reflect upon why you chose to serve in the most noble profession on the planet. Today I call upon each of you to lift up your spirit, to renew your dedication and to reconnect with the emotions that ran deep in your heart and soul when you chose to join…when you chose to serve. Make no mistake - we are here to serve and I look forward to our service together.

Today we rededicate the New Orleans Police Department and all of its members to the call to serve our community. Today we remind ourselves that it is community first. Today we reaffirm our commitment to one another to pursue valor and determination – professionalism and accountability.

Today we call upon all the neighborhoods and communities of New Orleans to help us to serve. We, the police, have always been and always will be an extension of you, the community we serve. In our earliest days we stood as watchman together for one another. Over time and history we created police departments to stand watch for us all. It is time to reconnect the two: as we stand watch for you, we will together watch over one another.

Today we know that there are many challenges that face us, but also know that we can build upon our successes, one step at a time. We must remember that each time we are called to assist, each time we confront crime and the horrible hold it has upon our friends, families, businesses and guests, that we have the opportunity to make a difference.

Making a difference every day is what policing is all about. Being there when a motorist is stranded, working hand in hand with our communities every day to take back our streets so that children, parents and grandparents can enjoy their front yards.

Or, as my grandparents would say, play on the “neutral ground,” or to walk along the “banquette,” never forgetting to stop at the “curbin” before crossing the street. As any New Orleanian knows, it is not North, South, East and West…it is Uptown, Downtown, River and Lake. We must and we will win back every neighborhood, one street at a time from all four points on the New Orleans compass.

Our recipe will be simple and straightforward; we will use the Community Policing Philosophy as implemented through Decentralized District based commands to fully implement our Crime Fighting and Quality of Life initiatives

Our first priority, every day, will be to relentlessly, legally and professionally pursue those who would do violence. Beginning tomorrow, I will convene a conference call of District Commanders as well as the Homicide and Sex Crimes Commanders get a full briefing on the prior 24 hours of any violent crime in our city. The briefing by these Commanders will focus not on what crime happened - it will focus on what do we know, what have we done and what will we do about those crimes.

To those who choose violence in our City, let there be no mistake about this: we will not rest, we will not waver, we will not lose focus, and we will not blink.

Community Policing provides for INDIVIDUALIZED police service throughout the diverse communities of New Orleans.

All neighborhoods are not the same; each Neighborhood deserves a police response tailored to its needs – that is what Community Policing is.

Community Policing provides the framework for PRIORITIZED PROBLEM SOLVING with our neighborhoods, as well as a DIRECT ACCOUNTABILITY LINK between the New Orleans Police Department and the community itself.

Community Policing ties this all together. The outcomes of our partnership and problem solving must be relentlessly followed up by the leadership of our police department to ensure the entire New Orleans Police Department is focused.

Building communities is perfectly matched to Community Policing Principles.

When people are safe they enjoy their neighborhood AND become MORE SAFE.

When people are SAFE, they use our schools.

When people are SAFE, they boost our economy.

To accomplish our goals, we will instill three basic principles in our daily service to this great city. Accountability, Transparency and Collaboration. It is my expectation and my promise that the application of these three principles will allow us to fix what is broken, to restore public confidence in the New Orleans Police Department and make this city SAFE.

ACCOUNTABITLITY

My expectation of service by our team is also as simple and straightforward: Truthfulness and Ethical Behavior – there will be NO tolerance for deviation.

Professional treatment of our citizens in every encounter, be it a call for service, a warrant to be served, an arrest to be made or a vehicle stop to be conducted, throughout this community. This same courteous and professional behavior will be equally expected with our partners in the District Attorney’s Office, throughout the Criminal Justice system, and with one another. This is our BASIC DUTY and it is NON-NEGOTIABLE.

We will expect no less than a full day’s effort each and every day.

One Superintendent cannot do it alone, we will require and expect supervisors to supervise, which ensures our team is accountable for its actions or inactions.

Our Public Integrity Bureau and department will reflect and respect the joint efforts of the City’s Inspector General and the Independent Police Monitor.

We will build and strengthen our partnerships with the FBI and U.S. Attorney to seek out and prosecute corrupt officers.

TRANSPARENCY

It is true that we cannot have enough sunlight and candor.

I unequivocally support the call by Mayor Landrieu to the Department of Justice and look forward to working hand in hand with Federal authorities.

Our weekly Comstat meetings will be OPEN to the public beginning next week.

Likewise, District Commanders are also instructed to open their weekly Comstat meetings to the public and other partners in their crime fighting and community building efforts.

It is just plain right to include any and all who want to witness the tremendous effort, dedication and focus of our leadership teams and the officers and staff they represent as they work to make our City safe. We want to document an accurate crime rate as our first priority.

Nationwide 50% of crime is unreported – in Nashville we achieved through our efforts the public reporting approximately 80% of crime. We will build and strengthen our partnerships with the FBI and U.S. Attorney to seek out and prosecute corrupt officers. We must restore our citizens’ trust and confidence to report crime.

Our measure of success is day to day, month to month, and year to year and we must work every day to achieve that success.

I will call for an immediate audit of our crime reporting mechanisms by state and federal authorities.

I will call for an immediate partnership with educational institutions to evaluate our computer systems that capture and report our crime data.

We will immediately reevaluate the training of officers and supervisors in preparing police investigative reports and the proper classifying of those crime reports.

We will immediately being crafting and implementing monthly audit systems.

We will open for public inspection and regular review our crime reporting systems and data by external parties.

COLLABORATION

Collaborating and cooperating with the people of New Orleans is everyone’s responsibility and IT STARTS with me.

Collaborating and cooperating with the Criminal Justice System at the local, state and federal levels is everyone’s responsibility and IT STARTS with me.

Collaborating and cooperating with the political systems, local, state and federal is everyone’s responsibility and IT STARTS with me.

Collaborating and cooperating with the media is everyone’s responsibility and IT STARTS with me.

As we look to the future, I know that many challenges remain. But, working hand and hand with all of our communities and neighborhoods, we can make a difference.

As we look to the future, I know that there are countless dedicated professional men and women of the New Orleans Police Department, and working hand in hand we will make a difference.

Mr. Mayor: My family and I have returned…we have come home to New Orleans because we believe its best days are ahead and we want to be part of that future! Thank you, and this city, for the opportunities our home provides.

Superintendent Ronal W. Serpas

Tags: COMSTAT, NOPD, Performance Management, Ronal Serpas

This entry was posted on Friday, May 14th, 2010 at 6:47 am and is filed under News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.