INC NEWS - Durham police chief search set (N&O)

[Caleb Southern]

Durham police chief search set

Durham Police Chief Steve Chalmers plans to retire in 2007. 

MICHAEL BIESECKER, Staff Writer, News & Observer

DURHAM - City Manager Patrick Baker said Monday he intends to launch a
national search for Durham's next police chief this winter, giving the new
hire time to settle into the top job before current Chief Steve Chalmers
retires.

Chalmers said in an interview published Friday he plans to retire in
December 2007. Though the chief made clear when he accepted the position in
2002 that he intended to lead the department for about five years, the
announcement came as a surprise to some in city government. A Durham officer
since 1975, Chalmers had previously talked about his retirement but had not
named a specific date by which he will leave.

The chief's planned departure has Durham officials pledging to avoid a
repeat of the city's disastrous 2002 police chief search, when Chalmers was
hired after two other men accepted the position but resigned before starting
work. The botched handling of that search was a key factor in the erosion of
support for Baker's predecessor, former City Manager Marcia Conner, who
eventually was forced to resign.

"I would think to do an adequate job [finding a new chief] will take four or
five months," Baker said of his timeline. "Ideally, I would like to have a
new successor in place while the chief is still there, providing a period of
transition."

Chalmers has kept a low profile in his years as the city's top law
enforcement officer, often deferring to Baker or Mayor Bill Bell to comment
about the status of important investigations or defend the department from
criticism. He is credited with making several administrative improvements
within the department, reorganizing the command structure and putting
increased emphasis on community policing and anti-gang programs.

But the changes have thus far failed to curb violent crime, with Durham
leading North Carolina's 10 largest cities in per capita homicides in both
2004 and 2005. Murders are down through the first half of this year, though
incidents of other violent crimes are still climbing.

Bell said Durham needs to do a better job of combating gangs and drugs,
which should be the top priority of any new chief. However, Chalmers should
not be blamed for the city's failure to blunt violence, Bell said.

"The issue of reducing crime is not up to the police alone," Bell said
Monday. "It takes a communitywide effort."

Chalmers stood next to the mayor at news conferences last year after five
young men were shot execution-style in a South Durham townhouse. Four died.
The chief pledged swift action and expressed confidence that those
responsible would be brought to justice, an assessment he reiterated to the
City Council just last month. To date, no arrests have been made.

The chief also took some heat this spring for being largely invisible during
his department's intensely scrutinized investigation of rape accusations
against members of the Duke University lacrosse team. The chief was working
irregular hours while his mother was seriously ill, and he was keeping vigil
at the hospital. In his absence, the city manager handled statements to the
national media. Last week, Chalmers said he made a "conscious decision" not
to talk about the Duke lacrosse case.

"I've been somewhat surprised he hasn't said more about the lacrosse case,"
Eugene Brown, a Durham council member, said Monday of the chief's
performance.

Chief's decision

Baker said Chalmers, who did not take sick leave or vacation time during the
weeks he was largely out of the office, was kept apprised of the
investigation by cell phone and e-mail. The manager said such high-ranking
administrators have the discretion to determine when the city would be
better served by taking leave and designating a subordinate to be in charge.
Baker said the decision to stay in command during the family crisis was the
chief's, though he approved of Chalmers' handling of the situation.

"It was done with my full knowledge and consent," Baker said.

Chalmers was appointed interim chief after his predecessor resigned in 2002
and a majority then on the council voiced support for him as the search for
a new chief was conducted. However, he was eliminated from consideration by
then-City Manager Conner after a consulting firm hired to perform background
checks on the candidates said Chalmers was "untruthful" in failing to
disclose a 1982 arrest for domestic violence.

Conner eventually hired Gregory Watkins, a veteran of the Kansas City police
force. But Watkins resigned before starting work after The News & Observer
found he had been twice arrested on criminal charges involving accusations
of violence against women.

Conner then offered the job to her second choice, a chief from Kentucky, but
he was no longer interested. She then hired Douglas Scott, but he also
resigned before taking office after the city failed to offer him a benefits
package he found acceptable. By then facing intense criticism, Conner
yielded to demands to give the job to local favorite Chalmers.

"That search was a primer on how not to hire a police chief," Brown said.
"It was an embarrassment. We were the laughingstock for the state."
It will be up to Baker to hire Durham's next police chief. If history is any
guide, however, the manager can again expect plenty of advice from the
public and City Council.

"We don't need to micromanage the process," council member Thomas Stith said
Monday. "But the city manager reports to the council. It's not our place to
hire the police chief, but we will hold the city manager accountable for
that hiring."

Staff writer Michael Biesecker can be reached at 956-2421 or
mbieseck at newsobserver.com.