Yesterday, Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle announced that he will retire in April of 2010. This verified what City Manager Mary Suhm had already told the City Council. This is not good news for the city of Dallas.
Chief Kunkle has been on the job in Dallas since May 2004. He was hired away from the city of Arlington, and has been a breath of fresh air when compared to the list of failures that preceded him. When Kunkle assumed the job, the crime rate was very high and many groups in the city felt like they were being picked on by police. There were a lot of bad feelings.
Chief Kunkle has turned all that around and provided the leadership to make the Dallas Police Department respected again. He has reached out to all groups in the city and convinced them they will have their concerns heard and addressed, and he has done it all in a low-key and respectful way.
During his five year tenure, he has presided over a 32% decrease in violent crimes and a 34% decrease in homicides. In addition, the department has had fewer deadly-force incidents and fewer in-custody deaths.
Chief Kunkle has done an excellent job for the city of Dallas. I hope his replacement is as competent as he turned out to be.
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