Campus police has a new interim director of operations after the interim chief of police took a leave of absence.
William Citty, interim director of operations of campus police, was named to the position on Oct. 9. President Martha Burger sent an email to the university community announcing his appointment.
Citty had previously been with the Oklahoma City Police Department for 41 years, serving 15 years as police chief.
“Reporting directly to me, he will provide leadership to our police department and will assist with a smooth transition as we search for our next permanent chief,” Burger wrote in the email.
Citty has experience working in narcotics and homicides, as a campus resource officer, as the public information officer during the Oklahoma City bombing, and in the tactical unit, he said.
Having grown up in Oklahoma City, Citty said he appreciates the community.
“I told people I wouldn’t want to be chief in any other city, because I grew up here and I loved it here,” he said.
Although not originally in police work, Citty said he always had a passion for his community.
“I grew up in the sixties, and I didn’t like what I saw,” he said. “A lot of things that went on weren’t very good, weren’t very pleasant. I didn’t think much of police. But once I got in, I found that it’s a lot more professional than I ever thought it was, and I just fell in love with the idea of being a police officer.”
Part of Citty’s job includes finding a new police chief, he said.
“The type of people you hire are very important,” Citty said. “There’s always issues if you don’t have stability in your leadership.”
Citty said the new chief must have an understanding and appreciation of OCU’s diverse campus. He said he will be working closely with Jessica Martinez-Brooks, university diversity and inclusion advocate.
KC Curry, religion senior, said she has heard good things about Citty. She said the recent turnover in campus police has made them seem unreliable.
“In the future, I’d want the leadership to be involved in the campus and easy to talk to,” she said.
Having solid policies and procedures in campus police is a priority, Citty said.
“Everybody has to be held accountable,” he said.
Citty said he has already hired two new police officers and plans to hire more. He wants to bring in more training for officers, including diversity and inclusion training, he said.
“We all have bias. We develop it whether we know it or not,” he said. “The only way to deal with the bias is to know what that bias is and realize what you need to work on.”
Citty said police should be constantly working to understand diverse populations.
“You cannot do your job based on bias. You treat everybody the same,” he said.
Citty said although the university has been dealing with issues in the past few months, he doesn’t think it exhibits a systemic problem.
Students should trust that university leadership is working to address any concerns or issues, he said.
“Law enforcement has a responsibility to make everyone feel safe,” Citty said. “But police can’t do their job without the cooperation of the community.”
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