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Editorial: New Tampa police chief poised to meet challenges

 
Tampa Bay Times
Published April 30, 2015

Tampa's new police chief brings invaluable experience to the department at a defining moment in the city's history. Eric Ward's upbringing in the crime-torn neighborhoods of east Tampa and his years wearing a badge enable him to appreciate both the realities on the street and the need for fair policing. As areas from suburban St. Louis to Baltimore struggle to come to terms with police violence against black residents, Ward's policies and tone will go a long way toward determining whether Tampa becomes the next test case or a model for how police and their communities can work together.

Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn announced Thursday that Ward will succeed Chief Jane Castor, who retires next week. By hiring the assistant chief without looking at outside candidates, Buckhorn misses an opportunity to bring an outside look to a clubby department. But he is hoping for a speedy transition and signaling that Castor's strategy of focusing on crimes that lead to more serious offenses and of having officers visible in the community will not change. He also is sending a show of confidence to the ranks after a difficult couple of years in which several officers have been fired for misconduct.

As the department's No. 2 and a 26-year police veteran, Ward was a key commander who rose under Castor's tutelage. But he will be the chief now, and it's up to him to change the direction that has sidetracked the department for several years. The department's harassment of bicyclists in largely black east Tampa on the pretext of traffic enforcement needs to stop. This is nothing more than a stop-and-frisk tactic that throws entire communities under a police dragnet. The department's own statistics show it's an inefficient way of getting criminals, drugs and guns off the street. The city was right to ask the U.S. Justice Department to investigate the practice, but the issue is not solely what's legal but what's ethical and effective for law enforcement. Ward doesn't need direction from Washington to do the right thing.

The disproportionate impact on blacks from the department's abuse of bicycle enforcement sharpened a divide with the black community, and it comes as Tampa reels under a wave of shooting deaths and gun-related violence. Civil rights leaders who have been instrumental over the years in maintaining good lines of communication between the black community and police see the bicycle dragnet as aggravating relations between the two sides and serving as a barrier to police who rely on the community's help in identifying shooting suspects.

Ward can get this relationship back on track by showing a new attitude of respect for minority neighborhoods. The department still needs to be a significant presence in east Tampa, Sulphur Springs and other high-crime areas. But residents need to see the laws fairly enforced. That's the first step for the police in becoming partners with the churches, schools and other local institutions working to address the many moving parts at the intersection of crime, race and poverty.

As Tampa's second African-American police chief, Ward, 48, is a powerful symbol of a growing, diverse city, and of the opportunities that exist for home-grown high achievers. He should be proud to have already helped shape a department that overall has a solid public image. Ward must bring new discipline to the command ranks and a fresh approach to dealing with the higher-crime neighborhoods. Tampa has made great strides in race relations, but there is much more work to be done. The new chief is uniquely positioned to meet those challenges.