Fort Worth city manager defends choice of Ed Kraus for police chief
Fort Worth City Manager David Cooke defended his choice to hire a permanent police chief without a national search or public engagement on Thursday as residents of minority communities questioned the city’s commitment to end racial division.
Ed Kraus, who had served as interim police chief since May, accepted the department’s top job Wednesday when it was offered to him. The roughly six-month period included multiple officer-involved shootings and unrest, but also offered Kraus a tryout period in which he “more than stepped up,” Cooke said.
“During a very difficult time as our chief, he has been very responsive and visible in the community,” he said. “He is open and transparent and he is humble and exhibits sincere empathy.”
The department is recovering from the fatal shooting of a black woman in her home by a white officer in October. Aaron Dean faces a murder charge in the death of Atatiana Jefferson, 28, who was the sixth person killed by Fort Worth police this year.
Weeks of protests followed the Oct. 12 shooting with residents chanting “We don’t feel safe.” Many still come to City Council meetings to voice frustration.
Kraus, 52, replaces Joel Fitzgerald, the city’s first black chief, who was fired in May following a confrontation in Washington, D.C., with the head of the state police union during a memorial for fallen officers. The city has said he was fired because of the D.C. clash and his failure to exercise sound judgment and leadership.
Fitzgerald is suing the city and has demanded reinstatement.
The decision to take on the responsibility of chief was difficult, Kraus told the Star-Telegram late Wednesday night.
A few weeks ago Kraus told Assistant City Manager Jay Chapa that he needed time to spend with his family to consider if he wanted to pursue the position. It has been an “all consuming” role and had taken a toll on his family, he said. Kraus and his wife, Angie, have two sons, 19 and 22.
The family took the Thanksgiving week to consider whether he would seek the job permanently.
The past few months have been trying for the community and the department, Kraus said. Fort Worth police officers have shot seven people this year.
Kraus said he will continue to release “as much information as possible, as quickly as possible” about all situations, including instances when an officer shoots a person. Transparency is key to public trust, he said.
“The police work for the people,” he said Wednesday.
Cooke has said since May that he would evaluate Kraus’ ability as interim chief before deciding if a national search was needed. No other internal candidates were considered.
Kraus made $215,000 as interim chief and will make $224,685 with the promotion.
“We have gotten so many positive comments about his leadership, about his transparency, about him being visible in everywhere in the community,” Cooke said. “I would say I was getting all kinds of public feedback.”
During Thursday’s press conference formally announcing Kraus as the chief, Michael Sneed, a cousin of Jefferson’s from Dallas, came forward from the back of the room to thank Kraus for attending her funeral. Kraus has been accessible and helpful, he said.
“I think you’re a great guy, and I wish I could take you back to Dallas,” Sneed told Kraus.
Fort Worth reaction
Many wish Cooke had conducted a national search and allowed the public to vet multiple candidates.
Daryl Davis, who ran against Councilman Jungus Jordan in May, has frequently criticized the council for failing to listen to constituents. Since Jefferson’s shooting, Davis has been a frequent speaker at council meetings voicing concern about the absence of transparency, diversity and community input into decisions about the police.
He said he expected the city to gather a pool of diverse candidates and hear from residents about what they wanted. Kraus’ hiring was “more of the same old Fort Worth way,” Davis said.
“I’m not saying we need another African-American chief. There are plenty of Latinos who could fill that position, but they weren’t given the chance,” he said. “If Chief Kraus had won out, then by all means give him the job. This just doesn’t seem very transparent in my opinion.”
Advocates and members of the city’s black community have been chastising elected leaders and bureaucrats for years about policing and diversity issues.
The 2016 arrest of Jacqueline Craig resulted in public outcry and surfaced racial and cultural inequalities in the city. Craig was arrested with her two daughters in December 2016 after she had called police to resolve a dispute with a neighbor. The confrontation that ensued was captured on video, which sparked outrage and complaints of excessive force.
Kevin “KL” Johnson has been one of the vocal critics of city leaders and has run for City Council twice.
He was pessimistic Kraus would bring change to the city and called the hiring without hearing from the public “part of the good old boy system.”
“I think given the circumstances we should have some real influence,” he said.
A committee of random residents without connections to city officials should have been allowed to interview candidates, he said.
Members of United Fort Worth, a grassroots coalition that has made accountability and diversity a mantle of its platform, along with the Tarrant County Coalition for Community Oversight, have been frustrated with how the city has selected candidates for an independent police monitor and a diversity and inclusion director. In a statement Wednesday night, the group continued that criticism in its assessment of Kraus’ hiring.
“To build a positive relationship with the people, Ed Kraus should have asked for a transparent and community-driven process with a pool of candidates,” the statement said. “At such a critical time, there was no opportunity to give feedback on who leads our police department. That causes us concern.”
The Star-Telegram reached out to others, including the Fort Worth chapter of the NAACP, which did not respond to a request for comment as of Thursday evening.
Race and culture
Following Craig’s arrest, the city formed a Race and Culture Task Force to address disparities. Among dozens of findings and recommendations, the task force noted the need to increase diversity hiring in the police department.
But now task force leaders say a national search for diverse candidates wasn’t needed for the police chief.
Bob Ray Sanders, of the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce and a Race and Culture Task Force co-chairman, said he worried that hiring an outsider, regardless of race or background, would mire efforts to heal division in the city. A person needs two or more years to get a solid footing in Fort Worth, he said.
“Fort Worth can’t wait,” he said. “We need to move forward now.”
Race and Culture Task Force co-chairwoman Rosa Navejar agreed, saying Kraus “gets diversity.”
Kraus was the liaison between the task force and the police department and his knowledge of the city and various communities impressed her, she said.
“I came to admire him during the meetings,” she said. “His patience and his knowledge — I was somewhat surprised.”
The city is moving forward with all of the task forces recommendations.
Next week Christina Brooks will begin as the city’s first Diversity and Inclusion Director, a role born from the task force and focused on increasing diversity in city employment and services, among other things. Brooks formerly held that position in South Bend, Indiana.
Cooke will interview three finalists for an independent police monitor position, none of whom are white: Kim Neal, Denise Rodriguez and Edward Harness.
Public forums were held with candidates for both of those positions.
Assistant City Manager Jay Chapa, who oversees the police department, said he believed he, Cooke and other officials had received more feedback about Kraus through unsolicited calls and emails than they would have through a public forum, though he couldn’t immediately quantify how many people had contacted the city.
“It’s not like we’re hiring someone people don’t know,” he said.
This story was originally published December 5, 2019 at 6:36 PM with the headline "Fort Worth city manager defends choice of Ed Kraus for police chief."
