Lafayette, Louisiana has a new police chief who is focused on reducing crime and increasing accountability. That chief is Grambling State University alumnus Thomas Glover, Sr.
According to The Advocate, Glover his sights set high for a career in law enforcement even as a young man, as he graduated from Grambling with a BA in Criminal Justice and Political Science. Now, as a 39-year-veteran of the Dallas Police Department, Glover is especially qualified for his new role. He ultimately spent 29 years in supervisory positions. His background includes leading Dallas’ domestic violence unit for 13 years, supervising numerous special response teams, overseeing community policing initiatives, and managing the personnel recruitment and development team. He ultimately retired as the Dallas Police Department Deputy Chief in 2017.
“I definitely want to thank the citizens of the city of Lafayette and the members of the police department. It is a tremendous honor to be here. I have almost 40 years of experience in policing….I still love it; it’s a very noble profession. Here and there we have some kinks we have to iron out, but I think in the end we’re going to do a great job,” said Glover.
This week Lafayette’s Mayor-President Josh Guillory tapped him for the position, happy to bring him out of retirement. It was Glover’s integrity, both for himself and for others, that sealed the deal.
“I hope everyone can see that we have before us a man of integrity. We have before us a man that appreciates accountability and a man that I find to be a leader who leads in the front, which is what we need. I find our new chief of police would not issue an order or give guidance to anyone before recognizing that he himself would do that same task and follow that same order,” Guillory said.
I’m very much looking forward to working with him and his team, and I believe that he can make LPD the best that it can be,” said a proud Guillory.
With his first day being December 31, 2020, the new chief already has his plans laid out. In particular, his main objectives include reinforcing safety and reducing crime, building a relationship with stakeholders through community policing efforts, boosting staff retention and recruitment, and perhaps most importantly, increasing transparency.
“I am going to identify, isolate and eliminate anything that’s a problem within this department, whether it’s a person, it’s a practice, whether it’s a process. It doesn’t mean I’m coming in with a vendetta, it means I’m coming in to do the job I was hired for and that’s to be the best chief of police for the city and for the citizens, for the taxpayers and to make sure we’re moving forward in the 21st century,” Glover said.
