One-on-one interview: Bossier City’s new police chief spells out his initial goals

BOSSIER CITY, La. (KSLA) — Daniel Haugen has been Bossier City’s police chief for about two weeks.

His appointment was announced just days after Mayor Tommy Chandler called for the removal of Chris Estess as police chief and nearly a month after Sgt. Harold “BJ” Sanford was arrested for allegedly embezzling funds and illegally obtaining drugs. Estess is appealing his removal.

The mayor’s officer said Haugen’s chief exam score of 85 is still valid.

Haugen said his first order of business is manpower.

“There was a point in time where you may have three or four positions available when you got 50 applicants, and now we got 50 positions available, and we get three or four applicants,” Haugen said. “We’ve already pulled some people off of some support divisions and added them back to patrol, just trying to get more people on the street.”

He said by making sure current officers are happy, the department will start to see more recruits from referrals.

“Hopefully to create an atmosphere that the employees want to stay and stick around, if I can. If I can keep them safe, and make sure they get to go home to their families at the end of the night and provide them with the equipment and the support and everything that they need.”

FULL INTERVIEW:

Haugen said he will also make communication a priority.

“Keeping the mayor informed of day-to-day activities, and just letting them know what’s going on. He’s big on that anyway ... the relationship will come,” Haugen said. “We’re kind of looking at just a direct line of communication with our officers back to the chief’s office, being able to support them, let them know that we got their back and just being out there with them.”

Haugen noted that crime is about average, but he plans to implement research to target specific areas.

“We’re not a major crime city, but we do do have our share of it. ... That’s something I want to address. There’s all kinds of statistics out there and crime maps and ways to do that. And I’ve got a special team of guys that work with me every day and they’re starting to look into some of that stuff and software programs and things that we can we can purchase to help us with that and target specific areas where we know we have issues. Something we’re looking into, but it’s gonna take a little bit of time.”

In a news release, Mayor Chandler said, “Daniel Haugen’s faith and his family are the cornerstones of his personal and professional life. His quiet confidence and no-nonsense approach make a great combination to lead our Bossier City Police Department forward. I did not want to make an interim or temporary appointment; our city needs a Chief right now and I am proud to select Daniel Haugen as my Chief of Police.”

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