Latest news with #policedepartment
CBS News
24-07-2025
- Business
- CBS News
City of Golden, Colorado breaks ground on new city hall, police department building
Wednesday, the City of Golden, Colo., broke ground on a project nearly six years in the making. The municipal building, which will house the city hall and the police department, will be moved from its current location in the center of town on 10th street to a plot on the east end of Golden near the Coors plant. A patch of dirt that will soon become a new symbol of the future of the city. "I was really excited about it because it is, as you put it, the anchor," Golden resident Gerchard Pfau told CBS Colorado. "Golden continues to evolve, but the great thing about the city is it preserves." The move to this plot was part of the city's longtime plan to evolve the Clear Creek corridor to meet the demands of increasing traffic, visitors and residents. Moving the municipal building to the east end of town will put an anchor on an otherwise underdeveloped area of Golden. "This project will start the revitalization of this area of downtown, bring people and more opportunities for the future," said Mayor Laura Weinberg. The move instantly makes the old building one of the most valuable and coveted pieces of real estate in the city, located just off the central corridor of Washington Street and right next to Clear Creek, with access to the area. "When we purchased this property, we launched the Heart of Golden effort; it wasn't just built on this property that's vacant," said Weinberg. "It's about what's going to happen to the rest of the corridor." The city hasn't decided on what to do with it yet, but is asking the community for their input. "The prevailing thoughts have been more green space, more open space, more access to the creek," Weinberg added. Wednesday's groundbreaking was a momentous occasion for a project that started six years ago as the city enters a new phase of its life cycle, continuing to develop but still hoping to retain the same charm that Golden's always had. "Golden reinvents itself," Weinberg concluded. "We have for the last 160-plus years." The project is slated to take around two years to complete, alongside other development, including the Clayworks and other CoorsTek and Colorado School of Mines projects.
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
CBS News
17-07-2025
- CBS News
Miami Gardens police chief denies racial bias claims in five Hispanic officers' lawsuit
Miami Gardens Police Chief Delma Noel-Pratt is rejecting allegations from five Hispanic officers who claim they were subjected to racial discrimination over three years. "I want to make it absolutely clear that these allegations are without merit," Noel-Pratt said on Thursday. "Every decision I make, as difficult as it may be, is rooted in operational necessity and not personal bias. I do not operate in isolation." The officers — Sgt. Pedro Valdez and Officers Juan Gonzalez, Francisco Mejia, Rudy Hernandez, and Christian Vega — are represented by attorney Mike Pizzi, who announced on Wednesday his intent to file a federal lawsuit against the city. He stated that the officers were unfairly demoted, transferred, and disciplined without cause. Noel-Pratt said one officer was reassigned from a temporary federal detachment, which is not a guaranteed position. Another was transferred based on staffing needs and departmental goals. "These decisions are not made lightly and they are certainly not based on race or ethnicity," she said. Noel-Pratt said calls for her resignation are "misguided and misplaced," and noted that City Manager Cameron Benson has reaffirmed his support for her leadership. CBS News Miami reached out to Benson for comment but has not received a response. The city issued a statement Thursday saying it would not comment on the officers' claims due to pending litigation. Pizzi said he stands by the allegations and criticized the city and the chief for not addressing the issues. "I plan to file the lawsuit within 30 days and I will see the chief in court," he said. Noel-Pratt, who has led the department since 2017, said she remains committed to fairness and accountability for all employees, regardless of race or background. "My job is to hold every employee accountable to the standards of the profession," she said. "Federal lawsuits come with the title, and I am not afraid of a lawsuit." She spoke at police headquarters flanked by a few dozen officers, along with Miramar Police Chief Delrish Moss and North Miami Police Chief Cherise Gause.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Yahoo
City votes to dissolve Hudson Police Department citing leadership, budget constraints
HUDSON, Texas (KETK) – The City of Hudson in Angelina County has dissolved its police department, citing factors like leadership turnover, personnel matters and budget constraints. Last remaining Hawkins Police Department officer fired by city council 'The decision was not made lightly and many factors went into this outcome, the most important factor, however, was ensuring that the citizens of the City of Hudson receive access to the best quality law enforcement and emergency services possible,' Hudson city officials said. The city council voted to dissolve the police department in a special meeting on Tuesday. The decision came after city council members gave the department a 90-day grace period to find new leaders, strengthen their internal procedures and make sure their budget was used efficiently. 'As that grace period has unfolded, it became clear that the best decision for the city was to temporarily disband the department and receive law enforcement support from the Angelina County Sheriff's Department,' city officials said. Coffee City Police Department deactivated, police chief terminated The disbanding of the department means their three officer positions have been eliminated. While the city starts to wind down the department's affairs, they are developing a more formal agreement with the Angelina County Sheriff's Office to ensure more officer coverage. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Fox News
17-06-2025
- Fox News
Small town left with zero cops as council fires final officer amid mounting drama
A Texas community is riddled with more drama following the city council's decision to fire their last police officer. On Monday, the Hawkins City Council voted to terminate the last employee left in the Hawkins Police Department, Lt. Eric Tuma. Tuma's termination was based on the grounds of "dereliction of sworn duties" and "abandonment of post," according to the council's agenda meeting notes. During the meeting, Hawkins Mayor Debbie Rushing said they'd received reports that Tuma had not been responding to calls, KLTV reported. "I'm very distraught and can't believe it," council member Eric Maloy told KETK following the meeting. "They want our police back. They miss them. The community, the citizens." Maloy shared that Tuma had recently taken time off for a family emergency and notified the city and the Wood County Sheriff's Office about his absence, KLTV reported. Since 2021, the police department and city offices have been rocked by several resignations and terminations. Tuma, a Hawkins native, formerly served as the interim chief of the police department after the resignation of former chief Guy McKee in February 2024. Two other police officers also resigned at the time, as well as Municipal Court Judge Kyle Waggner. Hawkins, an East Texas community with a population of 1,300, is located 20 miles north of Tyler, Texas. Tuma's termination comes after Rushing fired three other officers in February, noting the decision was based on "improper hiring practices and a desire to start over the right way." Rushing said the officers had not been properly hired because they were not approved by the city council, leaving Tuma as the sole officer in the department. "It's amazing to me that there are still good cops that want to work in small towns and make it a better place, and we really just need it to go back to the way it was," Rushing told KETK. However, shortly after Rushing fired the three officers, the outlet reported she was arrested in May for allegedly "tampering with government records with intent to harm." Maloy also told KLTV that the city is currently facing 16 lawsuits, including many of those coming from former officers. Fox News Digital reached out to the Mayor's office and police department for comment, but did not immediately receive a response. Stepheny Price is a writer for Fox News Digital and FOX Business. She covers topics including missing persons, homicides, national crime cases, illegal immigration, and more. Story tips and ideas can be sent to
