Kriseman's First Staffing Decision - A Really Good One

Kriseman Press Release 11:59, November 13, 2013

Mayor-Elect Rick Kriseman enjoyed a productive meeting with Mayor Foster this morning at City Hall. They discussed several issues, including the state of negotiations with the Tampa Bay Rays.

In addition, Mayor-Elect Kriseman informed the mayor of his decision to name Assistant Chief of Police David H. DeKay the Interim Chief of Police upon the retirement of Chief Chuck Harmon.

"I have tremendous confidence in Dave DeKay. He has protected and served our community for more than thirty years and has long been a respected leader within the department. He is well-qualified and uniquely suited to serve as our Interim Chief of Police," said Mayor-Elect Kriseman.

"I look forward to this opportunity and will work hard to make this a smooth transition," said Assistant Chief DeKay.

Upon taking office and in cooperation with city council, Mayor-Elect Kriseman will task an outside firm to continue the search for a new police chief with the hopes of increasing the pool of applicants.

BIOGRAPHY

ASSISTANT CHIEF OF POLICE DAVID H. DeKAY

ST. PETERSBURG POLICE DEPARTMENT

INVESTIGATIVE SERVICES BUREAU

ASSISTANT CHIEF Investigative Services Bureau - August 16, 2007

ASSISTANT CHIEF Uniform Services Bureau - April 18, 2001

POLICE MAJOR May 5, 2000 District III Commander

POLICE LIEUTENANT October 4, 1999 District I - Evening Shift

POLICE SERGEANT October 1, 1990

POLICE OFFICER November 19, 1982 - Pinellas Police Academy Class #74

Selected Assignments During Career

TAC/Negotiation Administrative Coordinator

Field Training Supervisor

Hostage Negotiator

Special Events Section Coordinator

Police Reserve Unit Coordinator

Field Training Officer

TAC (SWAT) Team member

Computer Projects Section

Education

Bachelor of Fine Arts; June 1980 - Wayne State University, Detroit, MI

Senior Management Institute for Police (SMIP); June 2001 - PERF at Boston University 

Selected Training

T.A.C. (SWAT) School (80 hours) - March 9-20, 1987

Instructor Techniques (80 hours) - October 14, 1988

Hostage Negotiations (24 hours) - September 1-3, 1992

Firearms Instructor Course (44 hours) - October 18-22, 1993

Special Events Planning & Management (24 hours) - October 17-19, 1994

Protective Operations Training Seminar (USSS) - May 21-22, 1996

Awards

Best Marksman of TAC School (March, 1987)

Nominated for Officer of the Year (January 19, 1989)

Nominated for 1998 Ned March Award (December 21, 1998)

Selected Career Notes

Received gunshot wound on-duty during armed robbery. (October 8, 1984)

Part of the development team for the PISTOL project and other grant projects. Trained most

patrol officers in use of the "new" PISTOL report writing program and taught several classes of

report writing to new officers. Until I/Leads replaced P.I. in January of 2008, the same basic

program was utilized for report writing.

Developed and implemented a computer data-based system to track all off duty assignments.

Implemented several changes to provide a more simplified yet comprehensive off duty system.

That fiscal year involved nearly 9,000 off duty jobs costing more than $1.4 Million

End of News Release....

Comments
One of the most important decisions Mayor elect Rick Kriseman will make in the next few weeks will be who will be the interim Police Chief.

Given the fact the Mayor elect has indicated he would like to do a national search and use an independent search organization, the interim Police Chief could easily serve through the first 100 days of the Kriseman administration.

Selecting Dave DeKay is a great first step as the Mayor elect puts together his transition team.

DeKay is a long time member of the administrative staff. He is a consummate law enforcement professional who is data and detail oriented.

He is kind and caring person, cautious and consistent and a strong believer in capable and professional Policing.

Not particularly politically inclined, DeKay seems to prefer to focus on the detail.

DeKay will be a good gatekeeper and someone who will move slowly with care. He will leave the Department in good shape for the next chief.

Disclosure

I was the Manager of the Information and  Communication Services Division of the St. Petersburg Police Department from 2006 until 2011 and had the opportunity to work with Assistant Chief DeKay.  

e-mail Doc at: dr.webb@verizon.net, or send me a Facebook Friend request.