New Detroit Chief Leaves Cincinnati Force

Detroit native and Cincinnati Police Chief James Craig will return to his hometown to lead the police force for a city teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.

Photo via hjoew/Flickr.Photo via hjoew/Flickr.Detroit native and Cincinnati Police Chief James Craig will return to his hometown to lead the police force for a city teetering on the brink of bankruptcy.

Less than two years after taking over as Cincinnati's top cop, Chief Craig takes over a much less stable department in Detroit. Craig turned down a salary increase to accept his "dream job," reports the Detroit News.

Chief Craig faces a multitude of challenges, including raising officer morale, which Officer Ron Griffin told the Detroit News will be a tough challenge.

"The officers don't have the equipment they need, we're low in manpower, people are retiring like crazy, jumping ship—this guy would have to be Jesus to really help with morale," Griffin told the Detroit News.

The city could be forced to declare bankruptcy if talks with labor unions and creditors don't ease the city's cash crunch, reports Reuters. The city's emergency manager said he would know by June whether the city could avoid insolvency.

Craig said he would work in Cincinnati until June 22 before returning to Detroit full-time.

Craig began his career in law enforcement in 1977 as a patrol officer with the Detroit PD. He transfered to the LAPD in 1981, where he rose to the rank of Captain III. He retired in 2009. He returned to police work as the chief of the Portland (Maine) Police Department. In 2011, he took over as Cincinnati's chief.

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