Minor sworn in as Rogers police chief

 Minor Minor
Minor Minor

ROGERS -- Officers and community members applauded after Hayes Minor was sworn in as chief of the Rogers Police Department on Tuesday.

Minor, a 21-year veteran of the Police Department, was an easy choice, Mayor Greg Hines, mayor, told the group.

Minor’s biography

Hayes Minor began his career at the Rogers Police Department on Feb. 21, 1994, as a patrol officer. Minor was promoted to sergeant in 1998 and worked in both the uniform patrol and criminal investigation divisions until he resigned in August 2000.

Minor returned to the department in January 2001 as a patrol officer. He became a detective in Aug. 2001. He was promoted to sergeant in April 2004 and lieutenant in 2006 and captain in 2011.

Minor is a former SWAT team commander. He graduated from the FBI National Academy in 2010. He serves on the board of directors for the Northwest Arkansas Women’s Shelter. He lives in Bentonville with his wife and two sons and has a daughter living in Fayetteville.

Source: Rogers Police Department

Crime stats

Rogers Police Department had 31,065 calls for service in 2014 with 8,210 offenses. Calls to the department can include questions or events where no report was needed, said Hayes Minor, police chief.

• Police solved 85 percent of violent crimes reported during 2014.

• Police solved 82 percent of crimes against people, such as battery or rape, reported during 2014.

• Police solved 40 percent of property crimes, such as criminal mischief or theft, reported during 2014.

Source: Rogers Police Department

Prior to his appointment Minor had been interim chief and was a captain over both the uniform officer and criminal investigations divisions.

Minor is a person you can count on, and earned his rank as captain by gaining the respect of those around him, Hines said.

Rogers was left searching for a police chief after James Allen died in January. Allen had been chief in Rogers since April 2011. Hines said he delayed the appointment out of respect for Allen.

Lasting change comes slowly, Minor said. Allen changed the culture at the department when he came. He said there'll be a continued focus on serving the public, valuing employees, transparency, training and good equipment.

"During the last four years we've really ironed a lot of things out," he said Tuesday.

Training represents 10 percent of the department's budget and Minor wants to evaluate the types of training offered.

"I don't really see any big changes," he said. "I see stability."

There will be a few changes with Minor's promotion. The department has to fill two captain jobs he held. The department has 103 officers when fully staffed. There are 96 and five of those are in the police academy.

Internal promotions will have a ripple effect, Minor said. The new captains should be in place next month. People new to a position bring new ideas, he said.

Rogers doesn't hire sergeants, but hires patrolmen and allows them to move up the ranks. Minor has climbed the ranks twice. In 2000 he resigned and took a job in business. Six months later he was back and he started in patrol. Policing impacts lives, he said.

"To me it is a very noble profession and you really, truly get to make a difference," Minor said.

It may be the third or the 15th arrest, but people make turnarounds, he said. "There's some that you'll never reach, but those are the minority," Minor said.

Crime prevention is one of the biggest roles for the department, Minor said. School resource officers are an example of as they point out appropriate choices for children and keep schools safe.

Rogers has little violent crime. Police see more theft, vandalism or burglary and less assault or robbery, he said.

His goal is for people to see a Rogers officer know everything is going to be OK.

"Law enforcement is a community issue. It's not just for the police, he said.

The department has worked to build bridges with the community, said Jim Tull, certified public accountant with Crafton Tull. The same can't be said for other areas. Community involvement can help prevent situations like the recent events in Ferguson, Mo., Tull said. "We don't have that atmosphere here," he said.

Allen came to Rogers with the vision of developing leaders in the department, Hines said.

Promoting a local officer instead of instituting a search shows the department is healthy and gives the rookie officer a vision to aspire to, Hines said. At the same time, it's not an appointment to be made at the expense of the department, he said.

It's crucial for the mayor to trust police, Hines said. "We stand in lock step with the direction we are going," he said.

Council members said they supported the mayor's decision.

Marge Wolf, Ward 2, said she's pleased with the choice of Minor as chief. "We've seen him in action," she said.

Betsy Reithemeyer, Ward 4, said Minor is poised to continue Allen's legacy.

Doug Schrantz, Bentonville circuit judge, said he was a municipal court judge when Minor started as an officer.

"It's like watching your favorite Cardinal ball player play his whole career for the Cardinals," Schrantz said.

"You an always count on Hayes," Schrantz said.

Jesse Martinez, Little Flock police chief, said he's known Minor for years. "My interactions with him have always been characterized by professionalism, respect, and knowledge about the matter at hand," Martinez said.

Chief Jon Simpson of Bentonville said the two already consult each other regularly.

"With law enforcement we're all on the same side. We have a common goal," Simpson said. "This just makes it easy when you have trust next door."

Amye Buckley can be reached by email at abuckley@nwadg.com or on Twitter @NWAAmye.

NW News on 02/25/2015

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