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When Mayor Lightfoot announced David Brown as her superintendent pick, she said he helped Dallas reach 50 year lows in violent crime, but the numbers are more complicated than that. https://www.wbez.org/stories/pick-for-top-cop-didnt-reduce-violent-crime-in-dallas-how-will-he-do-in-chicago/6fbeaf7e-19cb-45d0-8107-1ea75a269479
Some other observations, some in the piece some not, from the last week of talking with people in Dallas about Chief Brown: First, people in Dallas are really split on his legacy there, and both sides seem to feel strongly about it. (⅙)
I heard both "Chicago is very lucky" and "I am so sorry for you guys” during my interviews. Dallas’ activist community does not have very positive feelings about Brown, in particular the way he handled shootings by officers. (2/6)
Everyone agrees he is a great communicator, and even critics gave him credit for being willing to meet with anybody. I also heard from everyone how smart he is, and some hope from his critics that he learned from his time in Dallas and will be a better leader in Chicago. (3/6)
I heard from some that Brown really cared about how officers treated citizens, and Brown developed a reputation for being tough on bad cops. Also, as violent crime stayed flat under Brown, overall crime declined. One expert said Brown deserved credit for that. (4/6)
The two rank-and-file Dallas cops I talked with were completely split. One said he was fantastic and built to lead a department like CPD. The other said he was the cause of a manpower problem that is still going on today. (⅚)
I am working on another story about Brown’s philosophy and record on policing and mental health. In his book, Brown wrote that his son suffered from Bipolar disorder. Brown’s son killed two people, including an officer, before being shot and killed by police. (6/6)
