“When there is discord between the city manager, the mayor and the police chief, the survival rate of the police chief drops down toward zero.”
That’s what Andy Scott, a retired police chief of Boca Raton, Florida, who consults nationwide on police policy, said in an interview with WCPO on June 4.
Scott offered his advice after a spike in early summer shootings had caused the first public cracks in the relationship between Cincinnati Police Chief Jeffrey Blackwell and city leaders. The chief would be fired, he said.
Three months later, his prediction came true.
On Wednesday, City Manager Harry Black not only fired Blackwell, he released a potentially career-ending report that accused him playing favorites with overtime, asking for free sporting tickets, having a shameless “selfie” photo habit, lying about the hours he worked and berating officers so badly that some requested counseling.
Yet Blackwell described the accusations as “a bunch of B.S.” and told reporters he is planning to sue the city over his firing.
Hours after that quick, dramatic firing, the turmoil continued at a City Council meeting which, at times, seemed on the edge of spilling out of control. Blackwell’s supporters in the community cheered for him and shouted criticisms at city leaders, while stone-faced police leaders vouched for the truthfulness of the accusations in the report.
Now, a day later, with the dust still settling, WCPO again turned to experts in psychology and police policy for answers.
Where does this leave the police department, its new interim chief Eliot Isaac and the city of Cincinnati, which once again topped national headlines?
“This was the front page story on CNN’s website last night. This is a really, really visible firing,” said Stacie Furst-Holloway, director of the masters psychology program at the University of Cincinnati and former head of undergraduate programs in organizational leadership and human resources.
“(The firing) was an incredibly difficult thing to do because it’s a highly public position," she said. "And given the recent history of Cincinnati, it was bound to attract attention and scrutiny."
How Do the Rank-and-File Officers Feel?
Relief and unity. Those two emotions are likely to be widely felt by Cincinnati police officers now that Blackwell is gone, experts said.
That’s after 485 police employees rated morale at an average of 2.29 on a scale of 1 to 10, in the department’s climate assessment.
Police leaders said morale was at an "all-time low” and described unprecedented disrespect and hostility toward officers. At a special meeting next week, the local Fraternal Order of Police had called for a no-confidence vote on Blackwell.
“This sort of brought the force together … and they probably feel very empowered that the chief they did not want is no longer there,” Furst-Holloway said.
Scott agreed.
“Right now there is certainly a sense of relief,” he said.
Officers can now focus on their jobs, said Walt Zalisko, a former police chief and owner of Global Investigative Group in Fort Myers, FL, which consults worldwide on police matters.
“I think they’ll be happy that the city took steps to terminate an unproductive police chief who created so much turmoil in the department that the officers didn’t have time to focus on crime fighting,” Zalisko said.
The few officers that made up Blackwell’s inner circle likely feel differently, and Furst-Holloway predicted they may take jobs elsewhere.
What Should the Interim Police Chief Do?
As interim chief, Isaac has a critical, yet fragile job, experts said.
He must uplift and rebuild the department, while reaching out to community leaders who may have some lingering ties to Blackwell and anger about his firing.
“He should be careful not to make any radical changes in the day-to-day operations,” Scott said.
Isaac should garner the support of all factions within the police department and assure them that the previous culture under Blackwell no longer exists, he said.
“He needs to make sure that everybody is focused on the job and make sure that police officers don’t get caught up in the anger and protests from the members of the community,” Furst-Holloway said.
Blackwell was well liked in neighborhoods such as Bond Hill, Avondale and West End, where he attended barbecues and kids' football games, and was known for reaching out to grieving families after tragic incidents.
Those bonds will have to be rebuilt carefully, experts said.
Many experts guessed that Isaac would stay on as chief permanently.
“But he’ll probably be trying his darnedest to become the new police chief … and he may be the best one for the job,” said Joe Key, CEO of Key Associates, a national police consulting firm based in Virginia.
Yet, Scott offered a caution.
“Remember that when you hire from within, there are already enemies made, and allies,” Scott said. “That’s the downside.”
Will Cincinnati Recover its Reputation?
A public battle that results in the firing of a police chief isn’t unique to Cincinnati.
It happens everywhere, and it happens often, experts said.
So there will be no shortage of candidates submitting their resumes to be the next police chief here.
“There are always people looking for police jobs,” Zalisko said.
All of the experts recommend a national search for a new police chief, and casting a wide net for candidates. And city leaders need to fix whatever was broken in the vetting process that allowed Blackwell to be hired in the first place, they said.
“They should go back and see who chose him, why they chose him, and then look at the selection process in a very critical way,” Key said.
Blackwell was hired in 2013, before John Cranley was elected mayor, and before Black was named city manager. At the time, Cranley had said he thought the city should wait so the next mayor would have a say in the decision.
Now city leaders can create a detailed job description so there will be no confusion about how much time the new chief should spend on travel, meetings and external communication, Furst-Holloway said.
“I think they need to decide how they see the job," she said. "Is it to be internally or externally focused? Or maybe it should be 50-50."
Perhaps the most crucial part of selecting a new chief should be community involvement. Experts recommend talking with the police union and community leaders, and hosting town hall meetings.
This is vital, especially in the wake of how Blackwell got fired.
“I think people were caught off guard that it happened, even though people were expecting it,” Furst-Holloway said. “You may not like a decision, but if you understand it, the reaction won’t be nearly as negative.”
Despite the controversy, Zalisko expects 50 to 75 resumes to arrive soon for the new police chief job. And if the city moves quickly, which experts recommend, a new chief could be chosen within six months.
“It’s a thankless job to be police chief,” Key said. “You have to be a politician and a cop. And you have to be good at both.”
