New Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain met with community members for the first time since taking office last month.
Mr. Chamberlain spent the first 10 minutes introducing himself to the audience. At the event, hosted by Colorado Sen. Rhonda Fields, Chamberlain, who will be the fifth person to lead the embattled department since April 2022, will seek answers about the department’s hiring strategy for East Colfax Crime. We faced a tough crowd of about 60 people.
“They appointed him, and the community had little, if any, input in the selection,” Fields said at the beginning of the event. “So this is an opportunity for us to get to know him a little bit better.”
Many people questioned APD’s presence at former President Donald Trump’s recent rally at the Gaylord Rockies Resort and Convention Center. Before the event, the Republican presidential candidate spoke out about the Venezuelan community and the presence of the prison gang Torren de Aragua in an apartment complex in Aurora.
The presence of APD’s recruitment team drew criticism from city council members, activists and the community. Former Aurora State Sen. Nancy Todd thought the decision to recruit people at the event was very concerning.
“Our city was vilified and mired in mud, and I think most of us were deeply offended by the lies that were being told to us on a national level,” Todd said. “When candidates come to our city and continue to promote that lie and continue to destroy our city, they support that lie without having the opportunity to defend it, to be welcomed and to use it as a venue. That’s very worrying.”
Chamberlain initially responded through APD’s X (formerly known as Twitter) account that the police department has no political affiliations. He stood by those comments Thursday night.
“They had an opportunity to influence and reach out to people who might be good candidates, and I would never interfere with that process,” Chamberlain said. “We are currently in a law enforcement understaffing crisis. This department is in a understaffing crisis. You can’t just say, ‘I can’t participate in that.’ That would be a mistake. ”
Tony Gorman/CPR NewsAPD Chief Todd Chamberlain State Sen. Rhonda Fields speaks with Aurora Police Chief Todd Chamberlain during a community meet-and-greet Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024, at the Dayton Street Opportunity Center. Introduced.
In discussing Aurora’s immigration issues, Chamberlain pointed out that many of the false narratives originate from the city of Aurora, due to a video from one of the apartment complexes that was released. Many of the new immigrants arriving in the city said they lacked infrastructure to support their livelihoods.
“Not all of these people are gang members. They’re immigrants just like any other immigrant that comes to this country, and this is probably one of the most diverse communities I’ve ever seen.” Chamberlain said. “How you assimilate, how you act, how you perform is the responsibility of everyone in this room, it’s the responsibility of the state, it’s the responsibility of the federal government, it’s the responsibility of the city. To be honest, a lot of that is missing now.”
Yoal Gebremeskel, who immigrated from Eritrea 26 years ago, asked about the relationship between crime and immigrant communities along the East Colfax Corridor.
Mr. Chamberlain responded by talking about intervention and prevention to address crime.
“I think it brings us back to what’s really important: people are being victimized, people are being abused, people are being hurt,” Chamberlain said. “And the primary objective of law enforcement is to make sure that we have the personnel to actually do the job of stopping that.”
Gebremeskel said the chief’s answer was not sufficient.
“We need accurate data to state and claim that recent immigration to Aurora has caused these acts of violence,” said Street Fraternity Executive Director Gebremeskel. Despite Aurora’s crime problems, the hope was that Chamberlain would help dispel false narratives about the community.
Tony Gorman/CPR News asks Yoar Gebremeskel, an immigrant from Eritrea, during Todd Chamberlain’s first public appearance as Aurora Police Chief. This event was held on Thursday, October 24, 2024 at the Dayton Street Opportunity Center.
“So whether it’s immigration, whether it’s violence, whether it’s genocide, whether it’s gangs, whether it’s violence in any form, even if it’s domestic, it’s mostly targeted violence. and community violence. For me, what I recognize and see is who the perpetrators are and why.”
In August, Chamberlain was selected to be the city’s next police chief. Various community members and organizations have voiced frustration with the city’s decision to exclude public input from the hiring process. Aurora City Manager Jason Batchelor reaffirmed his commitment to take on the role permanently, saying previous hiring rounds had been unsuccessful with public input.
Chamberlain has faced criticism and difficult challenges since taking office last month. APD is currently under a consent order from the state Attorney General’s Office for following racially biased tactics by officers.
After the event, Chamberlain said he enjoyed connecting with the community, although he answered some difficult questions. He believes the connection needs to be stronger.
“I hope it sends a message that myself and the Aurora Police Department are going to do everything we can to make this a safe community for everyone,” Chamberlain said.
“I know a lot of people hate the police because I’m a realist. When they look at me, they don’t look at me, they look at my uniform, and I don’t like it. But that’s the opportunity I have here to introduce them to me and introduce them to Todd Chamberlain and what my goals are for this agency, this organization, this community. My hope is to say something that will make an impact.”
Fields said there is a great need for collaboration between the community and the police department. She hopes to have more opportunities to discuss issues with Mr. Chamberlain.
“I felt like the conversation was very rich, very bold, very courageous. It touched on some of the questions that were posed to the chief and how he addressed them,” said Arapahoe County in November. said Fields, who is running for commissioner. “I don’t really know how receptive and responsive the community has been to his response. So there was some backlash, but that just shows he needs to be out there more.”
Chamberlain will be participating in another community forum hosted by Epitome of Black Excellence next week in Aurora on Oct. 29 at 6:30 p.m.
