The day Mayor Lauren McLean announced her pick for the new police chief, she sat down with City Cast Boise podcast host Lindsay Van Allen to explain why she chose Tucson’s Chris Dennison, and what’s next.
The Boise Police Department has been through a lot of turmoil in the last two years. In your role, how are you ensuring that doesn’t repeat?
“We’ve all been through it in the last couple of years. […] Dennison pointed out to me that while there have been issues tied to this department — there are issues tied to policing around the country — we are a city that is fundamentally safe. And because we’re a safe city, it gives room for the new chief, with a stellar director of the Office of Police Accountability, to truly lead in this space.”
Will Dennison follow the city’s guidance to deprioritize investigations into abortions?
“These are policies that the council has passed. Some people say, ‘The city shouldn’t be wading into this.’ This is an issue, unfortunately, the city must weigh into given the impact it has on people. It’s a policy of the City of Boise, and it’s a budget issue. […] There’s clarity from council and an expectation that policies set by council are followed by a department.”
Can you guarantee for the rest of your term that you will not order sweeps or support criminalization of outdoor camping when there’s no shelter space?
“I will say this: If the conditions that we have remain, where we’re working on shelter and we have shelters, you will not see me criminalizing sleeping. There’s a place for accountability. There are many ways to hold folks accountable. But when it comes to sleeping, I’ve always said, ‘Everybody’s got to sleep.’ That said, we also have rules that will be enforced, so I don’t want to see people taking advantage of the fact that in Boise we put people first, we’re going to lead with compassion, we’re creating solutions for folks to use.”
