Latest news with #EricRandall
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Pensacola Police Chief Eric Randall resigns
Eric Randall stepped down as chief of the Pensacola Police Department effective immediately, the city of Pensacola announced July 10. Mayor D.C. Reeves named Capt. Kristin Brown as acting chief of police. Capt. Erik Goss is currently serving as acting deputy chief while Deputy Chief Kevin Christman is on medical leave. Brown is a 29-year veteran of the department and the longest-tenured captain on the force. The News Journal reached out to Randall who said he did not have a comment on his resignation at this time. Homegrown: Eric Randall served hometown of Pensacola A Pensacola native, Randall returned to Pensacola and was sworn in as Pensacola's police chief in 2021 following the city council's unanimous confirmation. After graduating from Washington High School in 1991, Randall joined the U.S. Navy. Following his military service, he joined the Newport News Police Department in 1998 and worked his way up the ranks in that department. Former Pensacola Mayor Grover Robinson selected Randall as the city's next chief. Randall accepted and left the Newport News police to return to his childhood home. Randall took the helm at a crucial time for local law enforcement agencies as the deadly force by officers was put under a microscope in the aftermath of law enforcement officer killings of civilians such as George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. During his swearing in ceremony, Randall spoke on the importance of building trust between Pensacola citizens and the police department at the ceremony Monday. "It is important that we trust each other, and we continue the great work being done building trust in our community. It is imperative that our community trust us, our integrity must never be brought into question," he said. Randall was one of eight finalists during nationwide chief search The search for a new Pensacola Police Department chief began at the end of 2020 after then-Chief Tommi Lyter stepped down to take a job as chief deputy under Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons. Pensacola hired Public Sector Search & Consulting Inc. to conduct a nationwide search for Lyter's replacement. The search resulted in the selection of eight final candidates, who then were ranked by a city selection committee. The top three candidates chosen by the committee participated in a public candidate forum as well as interviews with city officials. Eric Randall prioritized curbing gun violence and violent crime in Pensacola Just weeks into his tenure as chief in 2021, Randall told the News Journal the level of gun violence in the city was "unacceptable," making it his No. 1 priority as leader of the department. By 2023, the city had seen roughly a 4% decrease overall in crime, and as much as a 10% decrease in violent crime. "We saw a reduction in 2021 when I was here for a half year and then a full year in 2022," Randall said. Randall also oversaw the department's partnership with the Escambia County Sheriff's Office implementing ShotSpotter, an automated gunshot detection system, throughout the city and county. Eric Randall believed community outreach was key to policing efforts Randall's efforts to better the department's community footprint included the addition of dedicated officers downtown to maintain foot patrols. Two years after Randall's swearing in, the city council approved the request to add two more dedicated police officers downtown. "This is designed in principle and purpose to be able to have high visibility in the CRA district, so the officers can be engaging, creating the relationships, empowering the community and problem-solving," Randall said. The department also hired two mental health experts to help residents in crisis alongside officers. Eric Randall awarded 2025 Trailblazer Award During the ninth annual Trailblazer awards in February, Randall was given its top award − the 2025 Trailblazer award − for his contributions to Pensacola and public safety. The awards are presented by the Epps Christian Center in partnership with the Kukua Institute. "What we do in law enforcement is a calling,'' Randall said. "I don't do it for recognition. I do it because I deeply care about this community." Interim chief to be introduced Tuesday Acting Chief of Police Kristin Brown is expected to be formally introduced to the community on Tuesday during Mayor Reeves' weekly press conference. This is a developing story. Check back later for more details. This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Pensacola Police Chief Eric Randall resigns Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
PPD Chief Eric Randall resigned after rank and file lost 'confidence' in leadership
Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves asked Pensacola Police Chief Eric Randall to resign after multiple years of declining employee engagement within the department. Reeves explained the reason for Randall's departure, which he described as a 'mutual' decision, during a press conference at the PPD on July 15 after several days of rampant online speculation over the chief's unexpected departure from the department. 'While I understand this decision may have seemed abrupt externally, if you know me well, we don't make decisions flippantly or without data,' Reeves said. Randall abruptly resigned on July 10, and Captain Kristin Brown was named acting chief. Reeves said if police officers 'aren't confident in the directions of leadership' and 'show up consistently unengaged,' then the city and his administration are not serving the public. The city has conducted employee engagement surveys since at least 2020, when former Mayor Grover Robinson implemented them, to measure confidence in leadership, job satisfaction and understanding of the city's direction. Reeves said he had conversations with Randall about expectations for PPD and the levels of trust and confidence in leadership that are reflected in those annual surveys. 'Those expectations set inside the building (Pensacola Police Department) had not been met to the agreed-upon standard over months and years of time, and we mutually agreed to part ways last week,' Reeves said. Randall was hired as police chief in 2021 after a nationwide search. He is a Pensacola native and a U.S. Navy veteran, but his law enforcement career had been entirely in the Newport News, Virginia, police department until he was hired for the PPD job. The search took place in the wake of the 2020 Black Lives Matter protest, in the aftermath of the police killings of George Floyd and Breonna Taylor. Those nationwide protests left PPD and the city grappling with community outrage over a 2019 police killing of Tymar Crawford by a PPD officer, who was ultimately fired but not charged with a crime. Those events led to the creation of a Citizens Police Advisory Committee, which held meetings to review the operations of PPD while the city conducted a search for a new police chief. Randall came on board and was tasked with implementing the recommendations of the advisory committee, which had been dissolved after producing a report of recommendations, and led an organization that had historically been led by a chief who had come up within their own ranks. Randall focused much of his attention on community outreach and crime reduction efforts. One of his first high-profile acts as chief was to remove the Confederate flag from PPD badges and patches and require SWAT team members to wear body cameras. Reeves acknowledged that building trust within an organization like a police department as an outsider is a tough task, and he believes Randall was given "ample runway" to make a change. "I will say, as we made clear with Chief Randall, that we provided accommodation for that," Reeves said. "In terms of how quickly we would normally react to employee engagement numbers versus how quickly we reacted, this department was an outlier among all 18 other city departments. In terms of having a consistent need for improvement there, and we allowed that to prolong a little bit longer because certainly I sympathize with being an outside person trying to come in and build trust inside a building, especially in public safety, a very fraternal organization." Reeves said the decision does not change his respect and appreciation for Randall and the work he did with the PPD. However, after days of rampant and growing speculation in the community, Reeves said he had to comment on his departure. "Any theories out there, I've heard them all over the last four days, that it has anything to do with ICE, that has to do with anything else — absolutely not,' Reeves said. 'There's no ill will, nothing below board that took place under Chief Randall. He's a good man, and my goal honestly is to certainly preserve a good man's dignity.' Reeves said being the PPD chief is a difficult job. 'I have the utmost respect for him, and I certainly want him to have great success in his future,' Reeves said. This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: PPD Chief Eric Randall resign at request of Pensacola mayor DC Reeves Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
13-07-2025
- Yahoo
Pensacola news you missed: PPD chief resigns, rodents shut down beach restaurant
Here's a roundup of our top stories from the past week. With a subscription to the Pensacola News Journal, you will receive full access to the work done by our journalists and photographers as they head out every day to help inform and explain the important issues affecting your community. The Blue Angels once again dazzled their hometown crowd, performing a series of shows during the annual Red, White and Blues Weekend. Tens of thousands of people packed the beach, starting with the largest crowd in recent memory at a Breakfast With the Blues Wednesday morning kickoff, and culminating with a full show on Saturday. Here's a look at some of the action from the weekend. Eric Randall stepped down as chief of the Pensacola Police Department effective immediately, the city of Pensacola announced July 10. Mayor D.C. Reeves named Capt. Kristin Brown as acting chief of police. Capt. Erik Goss is currently serving as acting deputy chief while Deputy Chief Kevin Christman is on medical leave. Brown is a 29-year veteran of the department and the longest-tenured captain on the force. A Pensacola native, Randall returned to Pensacola and was sworn in as Pensacola's police chief in 2021 following the city council's unanimous confirmation. Full story: Pensacola Police Chief Eric Randall resigns Sabine Sandbar Sunset Bar and Grill was temporarily closed July 1 after health inspectors noted 12 violations, with two high-priority violations. Inspectors observed approximately 40 rodent droppings in the following locations: 20 rodent droppings on top of dish machine in kitchen,10 rodent droppings underneath storage compartment on make line kitchen and 10 rodent droppings on floor in kitchen. Full story: Pensacola Beach restaurant temporarily closed after inspector finds 40 rodent droppings Lots of restaurants on Navy Boulevard in Warrington have faded and gone through the years, and though they might be remembered by some, they don't conjure up those special memories that only those truly beloved establishments do. For instance, not many old-timers miss Minnie Pearl's Chicken restaurant that existed for a short time in the late 1960s and early 1970s, serving up fried chicken and other vittles at 1094 Navy Boulevard. But there are others that hold those special memories and few westside restaurants have stirred as many taste buds and memory banks as Marchelos, that awesome Italian restaurant that was located at the south end of Navy Boulevard, the last stop before entry into Naval Air Station Pensacola. Or the first stop for those military folks looking to get off base for some fancy Italian dining. (And it is "Marchelos" with no apostrophe. The family name of the former restaurant owners is Marchelos.) It opened in 1953 and closed in 1999. Full story: Marchelos in Warrington is where memories were made, first dates shared, ashes scattered The Florida Department of Agriculture (FDACS) is proposing a significant change to the definition of 'dressed poultry' for small poultry farm producers, which farmers say would destroy their business. The proposed FDACS rule would mandate that poultry be sold with the head, feet, and internal organs poultry farmers say it's a big change from the previous standard, which follows USDA standards and permits the sale of whole birds with the head, organs and feet removed, like the way chicken appears when purchased from a grocery store. They say the change will not only turn off their customers, but it's unsanitary to leave the organs intact and would ultimately significantly hurt their bottom line and potentially put them out of business. Full story: Florida wants small farmers to sell chickens with organs and head intact. Farmers revolt This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: PPD chief resigns, Blues Angels wow in top stories of the week
