He's had a couple of weeks to settle into the job, and Syracuse's new police chief has a long list of things he would like to accomplish. The city’s top protector talks about how he plans to cut crime and keep our children safe.
It's probably the only contact many of our children will have with a Syracuse police officer. Again this year, an officer will be assigned to work at each high school and junior high. Whether it's settling fights, taking tips from kids, or just listening, it's a partnership with schools, Chief Steve Thompson says works,
Chief Thompson: “They also teach kids life skills, they're out there, they let kids know, we're normal people too.”
Keeping gangs out of schools, and off the streets, is also a priority for the new chief. Boot camp's been dismantled, the challenge now, to prevent new groups from emerging.
Chief Thompson: “We don't wait and see, we have things we are already doing, very proactive, individuals are trying to move up in the hierarchy. We are efforting arrests where possible.”
And where possible, the chief says he would also like see more cops, on the beat, in neighborhoods.
Chief Thompson: “I would really like to see us increase some beats, we have people when they observe an officer, they feel more comfortable, I would like to see that presence increased.”
Another challenge for the new chief is reducing overtime costs. He says he's making progress there. Something he is very excited about: a wireless crime fighting system, called CNY Leads. It's cutting down on paperwork, and speeding up the flow of vital information to detectives and cops on the streets. The chief says, it's exciting to lead a department that's on the cutting edge of technology.
