New police chief ushers in a new era

From our perspective, Hamtramck’s new police chief, Jamiel Altaheri, is making all the right moves.
For the past couple of months, the chief has been getting out in the community, meeting people and, more importantly, making connections. We haven’t seen this level of community outreach in a long time.
A number of people in the community had come to view the department as something like an occupational force.
So it’s an outreach that is overdue.
For too long, the public perception of the police department has been that it was sealed off from the community. It’s high time for the department to get out in the community and be the ambassadors for public safety.
Policing always starts at the ground level, with the officers and the chief making friendly connections with the community.
Chief Altaheri has made tremendous inroads toward the public view of officers as being here to help – not just to make arrests or hand out tickets. And, frankly, we find this good-will approach tremendously refreshing.
The chief has even proven his street credentials by buying a house here and becoming a member of the community – not simply someone who drives in from the suburbs and puts in 9 to 5 at his job.
And, being from New York City and working in that city’s police force gives Altaheri a cosmopolitan outlook on life, and a feel for how to communicate effectively with the people who live here.
Mayor Amer Ghalib and the city council made an excellent decision to appoint Chief Altaheri.
We are confident that the chief and the department are going to make Hamtramck’s police department an excellent example of how modern departments must integrate with the communities they serve.
Posted July 26, 2024