WARREN, Mich. (WXYZ) — Warren’s new police commissioner, Eric Hawkins, has been on the job for six months.
He previously served as chief in Southfield and Albany, New York. He’s the first African American to hold down the position of police commissioner in Warren.
Watch Carolyn Clifford's video report below:
“Getting into law enforcement back in 1990 with the Southfield Police Department, I was looking for something to do," Hawkins said.
Something to do meant free education as a police cadet, which would take him all the way to law school.
Some of the most dangerous situations Hawkins had to confront include pursuits, gun-related incidents and domestic violence.
Warren city officials reported 9,100 domestic violence calls in the last two years.
“When I was appointed as the commissioner here a little over six months ago… What I was consistently hearing as a theme was domestic violence and they were going to an increasing number of calls,” the city's top police officer said.
Hawkins said over 50% of major incidents in Warren were connected to domestic violence and accounted for almost 70% of homicides.
So, they launched a program called Operation Cycle Break to put a dent in the generational cycle of violence with children, families, victims and suspects.
“(They’re) some of the most dangerous calls that we can go on,” Hawkins said.
Watch our previous report about Operation Cycle Break in the video player below:
Hawkins listed the top three things the program will do.
“We wanted to provide some wraparound services for our victims, so that they know the pathway to our criminal justice system,” he said. “Second is services for those who are committing these crimes. A lot of times, we forget about counseling.”
“Third is making sure that our officers are trained and have that awareness.”
Hawkins said they’re seeing progress in the city. In fact, he says over 90% of cases given to the prosecutor have warrants issued for domestic violence, a 33% increase over last year. Plus there’s follow-up calls to victims.
Police pursuits have been a hot topic in Warren, with recent ones causing damage and resulting in death. But Hawkins has done something about that as well.
“First, we've got to provide some support for our officers. We’ve got to make sure our officers understand that there is a time to pursue and there is a time when some of these pursuits should be terminated,” he said.
Watch our previous report about police pursuits in Warren in the video player below:
Hawkins said there’s been a 50% reduction in pursuits compared to last year, with some terminated by officers and supervisor.
“But we want to send a clear message that crime, quality of life issues will be addressed in the city,” Hawkins said.
Among the good things happening in Warren is recruitment in the department.
“We're doing a great job in recruiting and retention within our department, getting the word out that this is a great place to work, this is a great city,” Hawkins said.
This summer, Hawkins said the department wants to stay connected with the community.
“We just go door to door, we knock on the door find out what do you need, what are some of your concerns,” the commissioner said. “We're looking forward to an exciting summer, a safe summer and a summer we can really work with our community.”
