Anthony Batts

Anthony Batts
Police career
Current status	Former Chief, Baltimore Police Department
Department	Baltimore City Police Department Oakland Police Department Long Beach Police Department
Allegiance	State of Maryland
Country	United States of America
Years of service	Baltimore (2012-2015), Oakland (2009-2011)
Rank	Baltimore: Commissioner Oakland: Chief of Police Long Beach: Chief of Police

Anthony W. Batts is the former Police Commissioner of the Baltimore Police Department, the eighth largest municipal police department in the United States.

Career

Batts was chief of police for the Californian cities of Oakland and Long Beach. He worked in the Long Beach Police Department for 27 years,^[1] rising to Chief of Police in 2002.^[2] Under Batts, homicides decreased 45% and overall crime decreased 13% in Long Beach.^[3]

Batts has said that he was motivated to seek the Oakland Chief of Police job by the aftermath of the killing of four Oakland police officers in March 2009.^[4] He was appointed Chief of Police in late 2009 and remained in the position until October 2011. Despite limited resource allocation in Oakland, he again led the department to achieve significant reductions in violent crime.

After a brief period in a research post at Harvard, Batts became the police commissioner of the Baltimore Police Department on September 27, 2012.^[5] During his tenure in Baltimore, his team was able to implement reforms that led to dramatic reductions in all metrics used to assess police performance, including overall declines in all Part I crime numbers, excessive force objections, and citizen complaints.

On July 8, 2015, Batts was fired from the Baltimore Police Department in the aftermath of a spike in homicide rates weeks after the 2015 Baltimore riots.^[6]

Batts has received various awards and commendations for heroism, crime reduction, community activism, and innovative programs, including California State University Long Beach Alumni of the Year, Boy Scouts of America Distinguished Citizen Award in the cities of Long Beach and Oakland, and Leadership Long Beach Alumnus of the Year. Batts was also honored by the Anti-Defamation League for community outreach efforts to erase anti-Semitism, bigotry, and intolerance. He has served on the following boards: Long Beach Memorial Hospital Board of Trustees; Board of Governors for Long Beach City College; Board of Directors for the Boy Scouts of America; and the Long Beach Children’s Clinic.

Batts has earned a Doctorate in Public Administration, a Master in Business Management, and a Bachelor of Science in Law Enforcement Administration.

Personal life

Batts's former wife is Laura Richardson (D-CA), a former member of the United States House of Representatives.^[7]

References

1. "LB Police Foundation plans farewell dinner for Chief Anthony Batts". Everything Long Beach. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
2. "City of Long Beach". Longbeach.gov. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
3. Archived 21 August 2009 at the Wayback Machine.
4. "Oakland officers' killings led Batts to job". SFGate.com. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
5. Baltimore Sun (August 27, 2012). "Baltimore police commissioner expected to be former Oakland chief - Baltimore Sun". Baltimoresun.com. Retrieved July 9, 2015.
6. "Baltimore Police Commissioner Anthony Batts to be replaced". Cbsnews.com. July 8, 2015. Retrieved March 27, 2016.
7. "RICHARDSON , Laura | US House of Representatives: History, Art & Archives". history.house.gov. Retrieved 2016-07-12.

External links

• Appearances on C-SPAN
  • Q&A interview with Batts, c-span.org, March 1, 2015.