Sanford Interim Chief Plans ' A-to-Z Review' of Department
May 04--Richard Myers began work as Sanford's new interim police chief today and promised an "A-to-Z review" of the troubled police department.
Myers, the former police chief in Colorado Springs, Colo., said he will focus on building relationships with Sanford's black community to repair racial tensions in the aftermath of the Trayvon Martin shooting.
"I've been working on divisive issues for 20 years," Myers said in a news conference in front of City Hall. "I will study, learn and listen, but most of all listen."
Myers said that he wanted to hear from "the disenfranchised" in Sanford. "I hope to be a bridge between the officers and the community."
He noted that when he was offered the job, he got advice from colleagues, many of whom "told me to run in the opposite direction." But he also met with his pastors, who encouraged him to take the job.
Myers, who has with 35 years of law enforcement experience, was hired by City Manager Norton Bonaparte to fill the role vacated by Chief Bill Lee. In March, Lee stepped aside temporarily after his department was criticized for not immediately arresting George Zimmerman for fatally shooting the 17-year-old Trayvon, who was black.
Zimmerman was later charged by a special prosecutor with second-degree murder.
Myers is expected to serve as interim chief for three to five months while investigations continue into the police department's actions, including an inquiry by the U.S. Justice Department. Lee remains on paid leave, drawing his $102,000 annual salary.
Bonaparte said that for interim chief, he wanted to hire an outsider with leadership experience who could evaluate the police department's day-to-day operations.
Myers, 57, began his law enforcement career in 1977. He has served as a police chief since 1984, including stints in the suburbs of Chicago and Detroit.
Myers served for about five years as police chief in Colorado Springs. He resigned in October after several controversies regarding the conduct of his officers. The Gazette, a newspaper in Colorado Springs, reported that Myers was forced out of the job as a result of the mayor's desire to "change direction." Myers then became interim chief in Manitou Springs, Colo., a suburb of Colorado Springs.
In Sanford, Myers will be paid $10,000 a month.
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