Archive for the ‘Chief of Police’ tag
Answers About New Acting Police Chief, George Turner
I attended the press conference this morning where Mayor-elect Kasim Reed announced his choice for a new acting Chief of Police: George Turner. Below are some notes and the questions/answers from the media. Reed first introduced Turner and then he spoke. From his intro, I learned the following….
- George Turner will be acting Chief of Police effective January 4, 2010 (when Reed starts).
- Turner was born and raised in Atlanta (a “Grady baby”).
- For first 9 years of his life he lived in Perry Homes, which was one of the first housing projects in Atlanta.
- Turner joined the APD in 1981 and has spent 3 decades on the force.
- During his tenure he rose to Support Service Division Chief, managed 164 million of the department’s budget, commanded the Human Resources Recruitment Unit, and commanded Zone 1 (Buckhead n’ such). According to Reed, Turner oversaw a 17% reduction of crime in that zone during his time.
Reed said he’s directed Turner to focus on the following priorities:
- gangs
- new officers
- morale
- meeting daily with command staff and officers
George Turner then came up, said thanks, and answered a few questions. His answers are after the jump.
11 Alive: George Turner to be Interim Police Chief
According to 11 Alive, George Turner will be the interim Chief of Police for APD. The AJC describes his current position:
Turner joined Atlanta’s police force in 1981 and has commanded the Zone 1 precinct of northwest Atlanta. He now oversees APD’s support services division, which includes the crime lab and the 911 communications center. Turner was a finalist last year for the police chief’s position in Fort Worth, Texas. He declined comment.
AJC Reports on Reed’s Selection of New Police Chief
An interesting read from the AJC.
Reed’s selection of Atlanta’s next police chief will be one of the most important decisions he’ll make as mayor, and he’s promised his process will be open and transparent, seek public input and entertain applications from “super cops” from within APD and nationwide.For that reason, Reed said recently, he doesn’t want to rush his decision.
