First, mayor, a quick clarification.
You requested the
resignation of Mary O'Connor.
It was not voluntary. I requested, OK,
just the incident happened November 12th.
According to the investigation,
you were made aware of the incident
on November 30th by Mary O'Connor.
After the media requested body Cam footage.
Was Mary O'Connor forthcoming enough?
Should you have been notified
about this incident sooner? She
my understanding is that she was
made aware of the public records
request on November 30th and
that's when she called me, right?
After she received that call,
and as you stated,
the incident occurred on November 12th,
so clearly I would have appreciated
no notification earlier.
You know, there was great
controversy surrounding your
appointment of Mary O'Connor,
and despite substantial public outrage,
you chose to nominate Mary O'Connor.
Why were you so adamant that she
was the best one for the job?
Well, having been in that position
in the past and interviewing
the candidates that you know
had applied for the position?
Mary O'Connor was the best candidate.
Mary O'Connor had the experience,
the skill, the motivation necessary
to lead our organization,
and she was the right person
for the at the right time.
You know, we also know the
controversy was because of an
incident that happened in 1995.
Mary O'Connor was arrested as a
rookie police officer charged with
battery on a law enforcement officer.
Again, a lot of public outrage.
Do you regret your
appointment of Mary O'Connor?
I don't regret my
appointment of Mary O'Connor.
I gave her a second chance because I believe.
That individuals deserve second chances.
But really that's why the
disappointment runs so deeply.
I had very high hopes for Mary
O'Connor and she had done good
things in her short tenure.
She had brought down the gun violent crime.
She had improved officer morale.
Self initiated activity had improved.
Officers took 250 more guns off the street.
This year than they did last year,
she solidified that relationship with
the community and the Police Department,
put some great initiatives in place.
But all of that pales in comparison
to the requirement for integrity
that I put in place.
You know, some people said it's
really not that big of a deal.
It was just a license plate on a golf cart.
Do you think you would have requested
the resignation of the Tampa
police chief had there not been
that history and that controversy?
Rooting back 25 plus years,
that's a hypothetical question.
But I looked at this particular incident
and it wasn't about a traffic stop,
it wasn't about a golf cart.
It was about integrity.
It was about utilizing your authority
to try to influence that incident.
And we hold all of our employees
to the highest standards of
professionalism and integrity.
And we expect that they will all exhibit
those high standards each and every day,
and it is imperative that
the chief of police do so.
OK. Thank you. Almost covered it.
I had a couple more questions here.
You know obviously you've
been the Tampa police chief.
What does a situation like
this do for morale at TPD?
Well, that's a that's a great question.
I talked to the staff at TPD this morning
prior to the release of this information,
let them know that Chief O'Connor
had resigned and what I asked of
them was to ensure that they focused
on making sure that the 1400.
Men and women of the Tampa Police
Department continue to provide those
stellar services to our community and
don't get distracted by this incident.
And you know that this incident
has now made national news.
It will continue to do so tonight.
What does this do for the reputation
of the city of Tampa? Well, you can't
let one incident like this be
reflective of the reputation of
the Tampa Police Department.
I truly believe that the Tampa Police
Department has proven over and over and
over again that they are one of the best
law enforcement agencies in the nation,
and it is very unfortunate that
this particular incident, you know.
Is circulating right now and those
individuals that may not know how good
the Tampa Police Department actually
is maybe forming opinions based on it.
Two more questions for you.
The totality of this incident.
You've watched it,
I'm sure a number of times you weren't
told until nearly three weeks later.
Here we are on the back end now,
what has been most concerning or
most disappointing to you out of
the totality of this incident?
Think of the totality of it is using
your professional position to try to
get out of of a situation or an issue.
OK. You know,
no firm deadline for the chief.
We know last time this took,
I believe it was like six months.
I'm not sure. I know it was lengthy,
it was complicated process
you that you just did. Yeah.
What will you do differently this time
around to ensure you get it right,
right. Well.
Clearly I picked the the person that
was best qualified for the position.
In the past, and as I I stated,
I believe in second chances,
but there's no guarantees in those outcomes.
And so we will do a very
comprehensive and exhausting
exhaustive search nationwide search.
And by saying nationwide search
that doesn't eliminate any
internal candidates either.
Tampa Police Department does a great
job of succession planning and ensuring
that their staff is prepared for
additional responsibilities and next steps.
And so we'll do a comprehensive
search that is very inclusive,
bringing in finalists for the
community to engage with,
meet with City Council,
you know,
ensuring that that everyone that
has a relationship with the Police
Department plays a part in the
the police chief's determination.
OK.