DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF) – Dallas Police Chief U. Renee Hall is a week into her new job and is already seeing a boost in morale.
Before Hall was hired, the department was criticized for a lack of Officers. More than 400 Officers have left the department in less than a year. The department currently has the lowest number of Officers it has had in close to 10 years. The new Chief said that confidence in a new leader will strengthen numbers.
“Calling them when they have a car accident or stub their toe or they’re just having issues,” said Chief Hall. “Reaching out to them has truly increased that level of morale.”
Hall said she is looking at numbers and community needs amid talk of a police shortage in Dallas. She said she can’t say there is a definite shortage until she assesses how and where Officers are being deployed.
“What I do know is that we started with 3,600 [Officers] and right now we’re right around 3,000,” said Hall. “But an analysis has to be done.”
Hall comes to Dallas from Detroit where she said the Police Department dealt with the lowest number of Officers it had in over 20 years.
“We were able to get the job done and we found efficient and effective ways to get the job done,” said Hall. Am I saying that 3,000 Officers is enough? No, that’s not what I’m saying. I just don’t know if 3,600 is that magic number.”
The Chief plans to analyze the department over the next few weeks to determine if the department is properly deployed across the city. At that point, she said she will determine if 3,000 Officers is too few. Hall anticipates recruitment to improve over time, but will focus on bringing new leadership to the department to make it more attractive for an Officer to be a part of.
“No matter what we do, we’re bound to make mistakes,” said Hall. “I think Knowing that your leader supports the decisions that you make and knowing that person is willing to come out and do the job alongside of you, means so much.”
Hall said her role as Chief is to make sure her Officers are taking care of the citizens and are being held accountable for protecting the community. Her top priority is improving the communication between Police and citizens.
“We need to create avenues for people to report back and tell us if we are meeting their needs,” Hall said.
The Chief said she spent the last week meeting her Officers and getting a feel for the policies and procedures of the department.
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