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Cincinnati police chief introduced

Ann Thompson
/
WVXU

Cincinnati's new police chief will be sworn in September 30th. Tuesday afternoon Jeffrey Blackwell met the media with a promise to make the department better. He said, "Certainly I want to bring as much of the innovative work that I've done that I think will fit in the community here without disrupting things too much. As the city manager said, they're on a good course here. I don't want to change it too much. I just want to make it better."

One of Blackwell's goals is to reduce violence among young African-American males. He says in most urban environments 70-75 percent of the people shooting and being shot are young male blacks between the ages of 16 and 24.

Blackwell, currently Deputy Chief in Columbus, has a history there of reaching out to urban youth. For five years he served on the Youth Violence Prevention Advisory Board. It develops, advocates for, and implements models for preventing youth violence and mitigating its effects on the community.

Blackwell, a 26-year veteran of the Columbus police department, knows Cincinnati wants a chief who will stay and promises to be here as long as the city wants him or at least five years.

Chief Blackwell's accomplishments:

  • Bridge building with immigrant populations
  • Advanced the use of technology
  • Established outreach programs with young people
  • Worked with communities to reduce crime
  • Cut operating costs

Little known fact: In 1987, while working as a parking ticket writer in Columbus, Blackwell chased down a bank robber and tackled him.

Ann Thompson has decades of journalism experience in the Greater Cincinnati market and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her reporting.