Selecting ‘interim’ a good idea
“I’m done with everything. I’m closing down. I won’t be making any more major decisions. It is time for me to just shut down.” – Police Chief Robert Moore
With that admission on Tuesday, Jackson Police Chief Robert Moore pretty much said it all.
With that, whether Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. selects an interim police chief to serve out Moore’s term of contract – ending June 30 – or not, Moore has effectively quit.
Some might say Moore quit before now. He’s been griping about “the media” being the cause of all his problems since his infamous November 2003 statement that the perception of crime in Jackson was worse than the reality.
What Moore never “got” (in perception or reality) was that the perception is changed by leaders taking decisive action – not decrying “perceptions” – to make real changes in procedures, police numbers, salaries, to force allocations . . . and show the results, creating a new reality.
That’s what voters essentially said they wanted May 3.
He could have been a leader. Now, he’s just a quitter.
Clarion Ledger Editorial
5/12/5
