Richard Pennington

Richard Pennington (November 26, 1946 – May 4, 2017)[1] served as Superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department in New Orleans, Louisiana from 1994 to 2002 and Chief of the Atlanta Police Department in Atlanta, Georgia from 2002 to 2010.[2]

Richard Pennington
Atlanta Chief of Police
In office
2002–2010
Superintendent of the New Orleans Police Department
In office
1994–2002
Personal details
Born
Richard Javon Pennington

(1946-11-26)November 26, 1946
Little Rock, Arkansas
DiedMay 4, 2017(2017-05-04) (aged 70)
Atlanta, Georgia
Alma mater

Early life

Pennington was born in Little Rock, Arkansas where his mother was a barber with her own shop and his father worked on the Rock Island Railroad.[3] The railroad closed while Pennington was in high school and the family moved to Gary, Indiana, where his father became a crane operator with U.S. Steel as well as a part-time deputy sheriff.[3] Pennington also had an uncle in the Chicago police force.[3] After her children grew up and moved out, Pennington's mother opened a pool hall and a restaurant as well as built apartments as rental units.[3] Pennington also spent childhood summers in rural Alabama with his grandfather.[3]

Early career and education

At 18, Pennington enlisted in the U.S. Air Force[3] and served as a member of the U.S. Air Force Security Police unit during the Vietnam War. He began his career in law enforcement in 1968 as an officer in the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia (MPD);[3] his first partner was Donald Graham who became publisher of The Washington Post.[3]

While working full-time, Pennington earned a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from American University and a master's degree in counseling from the University of the District of Columbia.[4]

Career

Pennington served in MPD for 26 years[5] and was eventually promoted to assistant chief.[6] In October 1994, he became police chief in New Orleans,[3] where he was credited with major improvements in what had been a poorly regarded and corruption-ridden police department.[7] In fact, conditions in the department were so bad before Pennington arrived, the United States Department of Justice was threatening to move in and take over the city's law enforcement. On the day of his inauguration, he was notified of the investigation and that one of his officers had murdered a witness.[8] Under Pennington, more than 350 officers were disciplined, fired (more than 100)[6] or indicted for misconduct[4], while one officer would become the second sentenced to death for violent crimes.[9]

Pennington was a candidate in the 2002 New Orleans mayoral election. Although he led in most pre-election polls, he finished second to Ray Nagin in the first round of voting, and lost the runoff election to Nagin by a margin of 59% to 41%.[10] Shortly thereafter, he resigned as New Orleans police chief. In July 2002, Shirley Franklin hired Pennington as the police chief of Atlanta, Georgia.[11] He served in that position until 2010,[12] overseeing a 39% reduction in violent crime in the city.[5]

In 2009, Pennington was a defendant in a lawsuit which alleges that he, along with other senior officers, engaged in a criminal conspiracy to retaliate against a police officer who testified on behalf of a defendant in a bond hearing in federal court. The case, Reid v. City of Atlanta, et al., United States District Court, Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division, is pending on cross motions for summary judgment.

Pennington was also a defendant in the federal civil rights lawsuit of Calhoun v. Pennington, filed in November 2009 on behalf of patrons of a gay bar in Atlanta who were detained and searched during a police raid.[13]

Personal life

Pennington was married from 1974 to 1984 and had one son from this marriage.[3] He remarried in 1992 and had a second son.[3]

References
  1. Barnes, Bart (2017-05-08). "Richard Pennington, a leader in three major police departments, dies at 70". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 2018-04-06.
  2. McKnight, Laura (May 4, 2017). "Former New Orleans police chief Richard Pennington dies". Times-Picayune. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  3. Mullener, Elizabeth (March 16, 1997). "Richard Pennington says he was warned about Len Davis corruption on day he was sworn in as police chief". Times-Picayune. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  4. "Richard Pennington Named New Police Chief of Atlanta". Jet. Johnson Publishing Company / Google Books. June 17, 2002. ISSN 0021-5996. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  5. Suggs, Ernie; Stafford, Leon (May 4, 2017). "Former police chief Pennington dies". myAJC. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  6. "Law & Disorder - Timeline: NOPD's Long History of Scandal". Frontline. PBS. August 25, 2010. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  7. Marcus, Frances Frank (1995-01-16). "Overhaul Is Planned for New Orleans Police". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  8. "Richard Pennington says he was warned about Len Davis corruption on day he was sworn in as police chief". NOLA.com. March 16, 1997. Retrieved October 18, 2018. "I thought, my lord, what am I getting myself into?" Pennington says.
  9. "Len Davis sentenced to death for murder of Kim Groves". NOLA.com. April 27, 1996. Retrieved October 18, 2018. He is the second cop in the past year to receive a death sentence, joining Antoinette Frank, who was condemned in September for gunning down another officer and two workers in a restaurant robbery.
  10. "15 candidates running for New Orleans mayor". Deseret News. 2002-02-03. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  11. Suggs, Ernie (May 4, 2017). "Shirley Franklin praises her former police chief, Richard Pennington". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  12. "Wife of former Atlanta police chief charged with DUI". WSBTV. 2012-02-13. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
  13. "Federal lawsuit filed against Atlanta police over raid at gay club". CNN. November 24, 2009. Retrieved 2017-05-05.
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