‘Missing piece of the puzzle’: Oakland Mayor speaks on new police chief

(KRON) — Floyd Mitchell, the first Black police chief for the city of Lubbock, Texas, will now be Oakland’s new police chief and the “missing piece of the puzzle,” Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao said Friday in an interview with KRON4.

Thao announced Mitchell as Oakland’s new police chief after a year-long search between several candidates.

Floyd Mitchell announced as Oakland’s next police chief

“Chief Mitchell is a strong leader. He is a crime fighter who also delivers results. And that’s the key factor that I’m looking for: results,” Thao said, praising Chief Mitchell’s harm reduction strategies through his past of reducing crime rates as police chief in Kansas City and Lubbock.

Mitchell was one of four candidates presented to the mayor last month by the Oakland Police Commission following a long and often contentious search process. “All the candidates were qualified, and I thank them for the process,” Thao said. “But Chief Mitchell really showed his proven leadership through all of the results he achieved.”

During his time in Kansas City and Lubbock, Mitchell also reduced emergency response times in both cities. Mayor Thao especially values the reduction in response times after Oakland faced issues with unanswered 911 calls.

“Oakland is finally on the right track to improving our 911 system, especially with the $2.5 million that the council and myself have invested in,” Thao said, praising the progress of the city’s investment in hiring more OPD dispatcher positions last September.

Having reduced crime rates and response times in both of his previous positions, Thao praises Mitchell’s leadership style as not just responsive but rather “proactive,” she said. “I’m confident that when he comes here, he will bring his experience to only add onto our strengths.”

Thao also emphasized the importance of how the upcoming police chief position will work with other public safety leaders in Oakland. “At the end of the day, I do believe this is a great pairing with my other public safety personnel. Again, it’s never just one person, it’s always a team,” Thao said.

“Now, I believe that I have my A-team regarding public safety,” Thao said, having a leadership team comprised of Floyd Mitchell as Oakland police chief, Chief Holly Joshi from the Department of Violence Prevention (DVP), and Chief Damon Covington from the Oakland Fire Department.

The mayor said Mitchell will be in Oakland starting next week and is expected to start his position as police chief between April and May.

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