A Conversation with Police Chief Norman

            I recently sat down for an interview with City of Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman. We discussed his career from before he even became a police officer. The chief is right here from Milwaukee, and he grew up in the area of 7^th and Capitol Drive. To give some people a better point of reference that is right by Messmer High School by the I-43 expressway. He reports that he was always interested in policing. When he was a sophomore in high school, he met the captain from the district 5 station. The DARE officers, dealing with drug issues, came and talked with students at the schools. During college, his senior year, he decided to apply. He had offers from several departments. He received a degree in criminal justice from UWM. He met several friends during that time who also eventually became police officers including his current assistant chief Steven Johnson. The chief stated during conversations in the academy he told people he wanted to be chief one day, but others didn’t take him seriously.

            He eventually took the test to become a detective, passed and moved up the ladder. A level of trust is very important in police work according to the chief. It helps with leadership and those who you work with. He was assistant chief and later became acting chief, before being appointed to chief with a 4 year-term. He reports in his vision for the department we all must engage and be involved. Stable neighborhoods are a major goal. The department must be responsible for the residents of the city. There are certain expectations and needs that must be met. Those items are measured and must be reviewed from time to time.

            I asked how do you engage the community, what does that look like? He reports that the department has hired a community engagement manager to keep us on track. The manager was hired about a year ago now. He coordinates with the districts and the community. PAL has been brought back and is helping to reach out to our youth here. Each district is adopting a school and working closely with them. The chief states he does not specifically tell a district what to do but he monitors their overall activities to see how they are addressing the community. He looks at education, enforcement and engineering to deal with the reckless driving issues in the city. The chief points to the recent bump outs along Capitol Dive and other locations as engineering helps. This is cutting down on passing in that third lane which is helping to slow down overall traffic. This will help with auto accidents and calls for service. If you have a prior reckless driving citation which was not paid, and you are stopped, your car can be towed.

            Citizen academies 1 and 2 are currently going on. This helps citizens to look at the inner workings of the department and understand how and why certain things are being done. Block watches are also very important to help with stable neighborhoods. The chief just wants the community to meet us half-way. The crime situation is getting better but there are still challenges. The chief continues “we need to step up, all of us, and don’t be afraid of our youth”. Finally, the chief stated, “kids said they want more mentors, not money”.