CAL
November 11th, 2009, 10:16 PM
09:50 PM CST on Wednesday, November 11, 2009
By SCOTT GOLDSTEIN / The Dallas Morning News
Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle will announce his retirement Thursday after more than five years that included a boost in the number of officers and a steady drop in overall crime.
The chief plans to formally announce at a 10 a.m. news conference that he will end his tenure by April.
Kunkle said Wednesday evening that he decided the timeframe for his retirement about a year ago. He noted that he turned 59 on Friday and that February would mark the 38th anniversary of his hiring as a Dallas police officer.
He initially planned to retire last February, he said, but decided to stay on longer when asked to do so.
“I wanted to go as much as possible on my own terms, controlling the circumstances in which I left,” said Kunkle, who became chief in 2004. “In order to do that, you have to go when you are not pressured to leave.
“I wanted to come in with dignity and leave with dignity. I’ve decided to term-limit myself,” he said.
City Manager Mary Suhm said she already has launched a nationwide search for a new chief, and expects there to be internal candidates.
“One of his most significant contributions, in my mind, is he’s promoted and prepared a lot of talented people,” Suhm said.
Suhm said she was sorry to see Kunkle step down, and she praised his performance. She said he certainly could have stayed on the job if he wanted to.
In a memo sent to city leaders, Suhm highlighted what she considered key accomplishments of Kunkle’s tenure. Among them, she wrote:
*Five consecutive years of reductions in overall crime, including a 32 percent decrease in violent crime and a 34 percent drop in the murder rate.
*A 27.5 percent improvement in response times to 911 calls.
*An increase in force of more than 700 sworn officers.
“As a direct result of Chief Kunkle’s experienced and measured approach, the Dallas Police Department has achieved a period of growth and progress with an increased level of community/public support and trust,” Suhm wrote.
She also noted the creation of the department’s intelligence gathering and analysis unit, known as the Fusion Center; the opening of the South Central Patrol Division; and the development of the W.W. Caruth Jr. Police Institute.
Kunkle, who had no big-city experience as a chief when he was hired, has enjoyed widespread support from city officials and community leaders.
“If you look back and try to put five years together going back to 1970, I don’t think you find a better five-year period,” Kunkle said.
But the man who decades ago became the youngest person to reach the rank of captain said Wednesday night that six years is about the typical shelf-life of a Dallas police chief.
Since 1960, the average chief has lasted about four years.
Kunkle previously served as police chief in Grand Prairie and Arlington. The Dallas Police Department was coming off several tumultuous years when Kunkle left his post as an Arlington deputy city manager to become chief in June 2004.
He inherited an organization still dealing with the fallout over false arrests in a fake-drug scandal. He faced racial tensions and a recent history of faulty hiring practices and poor leadership
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...2a99d326e.html (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/111209dnmetkunkle.2a99d326e.html)
By SCOTT GOLDSTEIN / The Dallas Morning News
Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle will announce his retirement Thursday after more than five years that included a boost in the number of officers and a steady drop in overall crime.
The chief plans to formally announce at a 10 a.m. news conference that he will end his tenure by April.
Kunkle said Wednesday evening that he decided the timeframe for his retirement about a year ago. He noted that he turned 59 on Friday and that February would mark the 38th anniversary of his hiring as a Dallas police officer.
He initially planned to retire last February, he said, but decided to stay on longer when asked to do so.
“I wanted to go as much as possible on my own terms, controlling the circumstances in which I left,” said Kunkle, who became chief in 2004. “In order to do that, you have to go when you are not pressured to leave.
“I wanted to come in with dignity and leave with dignity. I’ve decided to term-limit myself,” he said.
City Manager Mary Suhm said she already has launched a nationwide search for a new chief, and expects there to be internal candidates.
“One of his most significant contributions, in my mind, is he’s promoted and prepared a lot of talented people,” Suhm said.
Suhm said she was sorry to see Kunkle step down, and she praised his performance. She said he certainly could have stayed on the job if he wanted to.
In a memo sent to city leaders, Suhm highlighted what she considered key accomplishments of Kunkle’s tenure. Among them, she wrote:
*Five consecutive years of reductions in overall crime, including a 32 percent decrease in violent crime and a 34 percent drop in the murder rate.
*A 27.5 percent improvement in response times to 911 calls.
*An increase in force of more than 700 sworn officers.
“As a direct result of Chief Kunkle’s experienced and measured approach, the Dallas Police Department has achieved a period of growth and progress with an increased level of community/public support and trust,” Suhm wrote.
She also noted the creation of the department’s intelligence gathering and analysis unit, known as the Fusion Center; the opening of the South Central Patrol Division; and the development of the W.W. Caruth Jr. Police Institute.
Kunkle, who had no big-city experience as a chief when he was hired, has enjoyed widespread support from city officials and community leaders.
“If you look back and try to put five years together going back to 1970, I don’t think you find a better five-year period,” Kunkle said.
But the man who decades ago became the youngest person to reach the rank of captain said Wednesday night that six years is about the typical shelf-life of a Dallas police chief.
Since 1960, the average chief has lasted about four years.
Kunkle previously served as police chief in Grand Prairie and Arlington. The Dallas Police Department was coming off several tumultuous years when Kunkle left his post as an Arlington deputy city manager to become chief in June 2004.
He inherited an organization still dealing with the fallout over false arrests in a fake-drug scandal. He faced racial tensions and a recent history of faulty hiring practices and poor leadership
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcont...2a99d326e.html (http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/111209dnmetkunkle.2a99d326e.html)