“
Being a leader... is about
building a culture where
others can be successful
and make a difference.
”
As a lieutenant I was given the opportunity to put my
ideas to the test and worked with many other departments
around the country that were trying the same thing. As a
captain in charge of field operations I was able develop the
best talent with the latest strategies.
When I became chief in 1988, I included problem solving
as a key component of my philosophy. I wrote the policing
philosophy down, and it was published in the FBI Journal. I
used it as the road map to guide our leaders and supervisors.
From the day it was published, it seemed to bring new life
to our department. Couple the philosophy with believing
in your employees and providing them the best training and
equipment and it makes a tremendous difference.
CPCA: How big a role has three strikes, gang injunctions
and other changes in law played in Santa Ana’s success?
Walters: It wasn’t so much the law, but instead how could
you maximize resources through grants and partnerships?
Staying abreast of state law and using partnerships with
other county, state and federal agencies was a key part
of the COP philosophy. It didn’t matter if it was gang
injunctions, federal wiretaps or federal task forces. I try to
stay current and abreast of the latest strategies to help keep
our community safe. If it is effective, I want to know about
it - and how we can use it.
CPCA: How is Santa Ana PD different today than it was
in the late 1970s, early 1980s?
Walters: We are a totally different department. The advent
of the technology and crime analysis has changed what we
do and how we do it.
Today we use all types of technology and have a proud
tradition of community-based leadership that is known
around the country. Our reputation provides the
opportunity to select outstanding talent to join the
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Behind The Badge
department. The quality of employees can either help to
make you the best or be a drain on your limited resources.
In the beginning of community policing we had more than
two personnel per thousand residents. Currently, we only
have less than half the ratio - .9 police officers per thousand.
You received an anonymous $1million donation five
years ago to be used to reward those who help solve gang
homicides. How did you secure the donation - and how
have you put it to work?
We have been doing a lot of public relations work and
getting stories about how we needed community help
solving homicide s when a business man approached us and
asked if we would keep him anonymous and see what kind
of success we would have with offering rewards.
He said he was interested in doing this for some time and
had approached another department and they turned him
down. So we asked if he would deposit the money and
we would set publicity about it and keep him periodically
notified of how we were doing. He said when we ran out of
money he would supply us more funds.
As first, many of the staff were skeptical but it has really
helped us to solve some cases. We pay based on the amount
of information that is given to us. Whenever possible, we
keep the persons out of the press and out of the case.
It has been an interesting study of human behavior and the
success of reward programs.