David Kunkle - Dallas Miracle Worker

Anyone who lives in the Dallas-Fort Worth area knows what a mess the Dallas Police Department has been in the past. Dallas went through several police chiefs, but someone in the community was always unhappy with how things were going. If the north Dallas crowd was happy, then south Dallas was not, and vice versa. Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics were divided and it looked like they would never be able to agree on police matters. I came to believe that no one could please all of the political groups in Dallas as a police chief. It was just a mess that could not be fixed. Well, I was wrong!

In June 2004, the city of Dallas hired David Kunkle to be their new police chief. Kunkle was not new to the department. He had been a captain in the Dallas Police Department before leaving for jobs in Grand Prairie and then Arlington, so he knew what kind of mess he was stepping into.

Kunkle hit the ground running. He let it be known that inefficiency, unprofessionalism, and criminal conduct would not be tolerated in the Dallas Police Department. He has terminated 30 officers in his first two years, and reassigned or demoted many in the department's leadership. For some police chiefs, this would just result in unhappy and mutinous officers, but not Kunkle. He has the support of the officers and the unions. In fact, I believe morale in the department is higher than it's been in years. The officers view him as a policeman, and not as a politician [in fact, shortly after taking the job as chief, he helped to apprehend a car thief].

How did the community react to Kunkle? They love him! Kunkle is a quiet-talking and self-deprecating person, and a great listener. If you are talking with him, you have his full attention. These skills, and the fact that he's just a really nice person, have combined to make him accepted and appreciated throughout the city. For the first time I can remember, Dallas has united behind a police chief.

This does not mean that Dallas no longer has crime problems, but crime is dropping in Dallas, even violent crime. Kunkle definitely has the department moving in the right direction. When asked how he has been so successful, the chief says, "It's been more luck than anything."

I don't believe it's luck. I believe Dallas just hired a capable professional with great people skills and the drive to make his department the best. If the city council has any sense [and that is sometimes in doubt], they will keep this "miracle-worker" around for a long time.



NOTE - Dallas Mayor Laura Miller has just announced that she will not seek re-election in May. The mayor said she had accomplished most of what she wanted to do, and now she wants to spend more time with her children. This is probably for the best. Recently, she has been a very devisive and polarizing force in the Dallas community.