DAYTON — After a months-long search process and a “difficult” decision, a new chief of police has been appointed for the Dayton Police Department
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“This is probably one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make,” Dayton City Manager Shelley Dickstein told News Center 7′s Mike Campbell.
The final choice was between interim Chief Matt Carper and Kamran Afzal, the current police chief in Hopewell, Va., Dickstein said. She chose Afzal “because of his tremendous leadership experience,” she said.
Afzal has also served as police chief in another department, and is on the command staff of the Arlington, Va. police department. He started his career with the U.S. Capitol Police.
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“At the core, it’s always about improving things as much as you can for others and leaving things in a better place than you found it,” Afzal said.
Afzal will lead the Dayton Police Department that has about 370 sworn officers. Dickstein said she believes he will lead the department through a time of great change for the way policing is done.
“We’re working on reform. It’s a process — it’s not a static flip-a-switch and we are done,” she said.
“Afzal is every innovative, He’s someone we believe will be a change agent for our community. He’s a listener, he’s a thinker,” said the NAACP in a statement.
In a statement, the FOP, who supported Carpenter, said “We welcome chief Afzal and his family to the great city of Dayton. We look forward to working with him. The FOP hopes to have the same great working relationship we enjoyed with retired police chief Richard Biehl.”
“I have tremendous respect and appreciation for the men and women of the Dayton Police Department, and the people we serve. Police officers have a very difficult job, and I will continue to support them and make sure they have the necessary resources and are prepared to handle the challenging situations they face. We will support Chief Afzal and work with command staff and city leaders to ensure a smooth transition,” Carper said.
Afzal and his family will be moving to Dayton with his first day expected to be Dec. 20.