After three weeks as Little Rock's police chief, Keith Humphrey said the divisions both in the department and in the community aren't as bad as they seem to be.
Humphrey, who has met with protesters and politicians, community leaders and residents, said he thinks Little Rock's problems are no more dire than those in similar cities across the nation.
"I kept hearing during the process that the department's broken," Humphrey said. "Every department has some fractures, but this department is not broken."
Humphrey took over as the Little Rock Police Department's top officer on April 15, and the weeks since have been busy, he said Wednesday in an interview.
Each day, Humphrey said, he meets with department heads, administration staff members and officers to talk about what's working and what needs improvement. Several days each week, Humphrey said, he meets with different community groups to try to better establish himself in Little Rock.
Humphrey's first three weeks have been fraught, too, with protests and national attention over a recent officer-involved shooting and other department policies.
Mayor Frank Scott Jr., who chose the new leader of the Little Rock department, said Humphrey's reaction to one of those protests reinforced his belief that he had chosen the right person.
On April 16, Humphrey's second day on the job, family members and friends of Bradley Blackshire, who was fatally shot in a traffic stop in February, blocked off the West Markham Street and Broadway intersection as they protested in front of City Hall. Protesters asked to meet with city leaders before they disbanded, and Humphrey walked out to visit them.
"He took it upon himself to visit with the Blackshire family and protesters," Scott said. "He wanted to get to know the family and to assure them that due process would be had and everyone involved would go through a thorough investigation."
Scott said he chose Humphrey as chief because of his "earnest focus on community policing, cultural competency and the need to look into a number of issues that are plaguing the Little Rock Police Department."
So far, Scott said, he sees Humphrey doing that, though he acknowledges there is still much to accomplish.
"I still firmly believe that there is need for improved relationships with the department," Scott said. "I think historically -- and even today -- there's room for improvement between the community at large and the law enforcement community."
IN THE COMMUNITY
Humphrey agreed that there is a "communication breakdown" between some parts of the city, and he said mending that gap has been one of his major focuses.
"I don't think the relationship with the community is totally broken. I think there are some areas that are fractured and maybe splintered, but not broken. Those are the ones I think we can easily repair," Humphrey said.
"We've been working hard since I've been here ... to fix those fractures."
Outside of meeting with community organizations and speaking at public events, Humphrey said, he has another tactic for understanding his community: barbershops.
"As an African American male, I feel very comfortable going into the African American barbershops," Humphrey said. "There's a lot of trust in there. There are a lot of discussions. I want people to ask me questions, especially with the climate in the nation between communities of color and law enforcement.
"I have no problem going into areas that people might fear that there's some animosity or apathy toward the Police Department in the minority community. I love going to those areas because I'd like to hear the problems and answer questions directly."
Humphrey said that though some areas in Little Rock maintain good relationships with police, he's certain that other communities feel disconnected.
"I do think there's a breakdown in communication in some areas of town," Humphrey said. "I do think there's a breakdown in communication in the department. My job is to fix that.
"No matter how hard you try to improve it, no matter what policies you put in place, you're never going to completely fix it. There's always going to be those individuals you're not going to satisfy. Whether we satisfy them or not, my job is to make sure we're doing all the right things."
Ronnie Morgan, president of the Little Rock Fraternal Order of Police, said Humphrey has been adamant about meeting with officers. Morgan said he's heard from many officers that Humphrey will stop and have conversations with policemen just to get to know them.
"In my dealings with him as an FOP president, he's been very open, and we've had good conversations," Morgan said. "Honestly, he's had a busy first month -- a busy first month for any chief. I think most officers are still of the opinion, that yes, they like what they see so far and they're willing to give him a chance and see how he does."
In one of his many recent public appearances, Humphrey spoke in front of a crowd at the Northwest Quarterly Meeting, where police leaders answer questions and present statistics for different areas of the city.
"The police chief said all the right things Thursday night," said Joanne B. McLendon, neighborhood association president for the University West district. "He's appreciative of the citizens. He's greatly appreciative of the department, and I think he's got good reason to be that way."
McLendon said she hasn't spoken with Humphrey at length but that her first impression of him was positive, adding that she's happy to see a chief out in the community.
"He encouraged the community to work with the police and to speak up," she said. "I think he is going to try real hard to solve problems and solve them the right way and with the best practices. I think the chief of police was well-chosen."
Humphrey said this tactic of embedding himself in the community to better understand its concerns worked well when he was a police chief in Lancaster, Texas, and Norman, Okla., where he was chief for eight years before taking the Little Rock position.
"Every day for 31 years has been preparing me for this job," Humphrey said. "You don't wake up one morning and say, 'I want to be the chief of Little Rock.' You have to prepare for that.
"It was a stair-step approach, and now this is my final step. I've gotten where I believe I can make the biggest impact."
Although the population and crime rate between Norman and Little Rock are vastly different, Humphrey said the jobs are similar.
"I think the demographics are different, but people are people," Humphrey said. "This Police Department has problems like any other police department. This city has problems like any other city. But, at the same time, I have not seen anything that can't be repaired. I haven't seen anything or met anyone who doesn't want to do things better."
Metro on 05/06/2019