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Police Chief Harris Talks Community and Realities

In candid town hall meeting, new Police Chief Eugene ‘Gene’ Harris vows to ‘bring community back’

Published on Friday, February 17, 2023 | 5:55 am
 

NAACP Pasadena Branch President Allan Edson watches Pasadena Police Chief Eugene Harris speak at an NAACP Townhall on Thursday, Feb. 16, 2023, in Northwest Pasadena. [Eddie Rivera/Pasadena Now]
About two-thirds of the way into an NAACP town hall presentation Thursday by new Pasadena Police Chief Gene Harris following a conversation centering around police abuses and community relations, the chief brought the meeting to a hush when he said, “I speak openly about this next part, simply because I want it to be a bridge to what my philosophy is in dealing with pain and dealing with things that happen within our families.”

Then he told the Jackie Robinson Community Center audience, “My son was murdered in 2005. He was 18, shot five times. I was a broken dude, I was a broken man. I understand pain. There’s nothing  that anybody can teach me about pain…but what I figured out after that, was how you treat people.”

“I don’t care what people [have done],” he continued. “I don’t care what their transgressions are. I don’t care if they’ve committed a crime or not. I don’t care about any of those things. The bottom line is that we are people. And everybody should be treated properly. That’s the foundation for my message to you today.”

With a long career in law enforcement behind him (he is actually now “long past retirement age,” he said), a military career, and several leadership positions in police associations, too, Harris has a clear idea of what the role of an officer is and is not.

“I wasn’t this way when I first started police work,” he told the rapt audience Thursday evening. “ We knew some people who, when they came to work, they came to work to jack people up. And we had to be taught. And if I can learn it, he can learn it, we can all learn it.”

Harris, responding to a question about “bad apples” among police officers, said the theme for his leadership would be “Bring community back.” 

A former US Marine, Harris spent more than 31 years in law enforcement. He started his career with the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department before moving to police departments in Monterey Park and San Gabriel. 

“When I first started with the Sheriff’s Department,” he said, “It was all about arresting people. ‘How many people can we put in jail?’”

Harris now serves as president of the Los Angeles County Police Chiefs’ Association, actively engaging in advancing the science and art of police administration and crime prevention. 

He was candid in his assessment of some area police departments.

“I know that police have been hiring people who should not be police officers,” he said.

Harris followed that comment by praising Senate Bill 2. The 2023 bill prohibits a person “who has been convicted of a felony, as specified, from regaining eligibility for peace officer employment based upon any later order of the court setting aside, vacating, withdrawing, expunging or otherwise dismissing or reversing the conviction, unless the court finds the person to be factually innocent of the crime for which they were convicted at the time of entry of the order.”

 The bill also disqualifies a person from being employed as a peace officer if that person “has been convicted of, or has been adjudicated in an administrative, military, or civil judicial process as having committed, a violation of certain specified crimes against public justice, including the falsification of records, bribery, or perjury.”

Said Harris,“I think that can move the needle in the direction we need to go in terms of holding ourselves accountable.” 

Harris said that under his leadership, the Pasadena Police Department would also be expanding recruitment efforts to Black colleges and the Asian community. 

“Making our recruitment culture rapid and robust will help us solve some of our problems.”

While much of the evening’s discussion centered around community relations and problems, Harris also responded to a question about police “wellness,” in coping with stress and pain. He responded that the department has begun to consider that element in its overall picture and has implemented a number of wellness initiatives.

“In the past,” he said, “we didn’t do much about it. We are working on it.”

Harris consistently acknowledged that there is much to do in restoring confidence and trust between the police and community, and reassured the audience.

“I am prepared to implement everything. This is not a pipe dream.”

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