Detroit's new interim chief wants to focus on crime and traffic

DETROIT (FOX 2) – Tuesday marks a new chapter for Detroit Police Department Interim Police Chief Todd Bettison, who will be sworn in to fill the role previously held by James White.

Bettison was sworn in on Tuesday and has already met with dozens of officials within the department.

“I hung out with the officers at roll call. I spent about an hour there talking to our young officers. There are so many officers we have hired since I left in 2022,” Bettison said.

The interim chief is referring to his previous role as deputy mayor in Mike Duggan's office over the past two years. Before that, however, he served with the Detroit Police Department for 27 years.

“I had to focus on so many different departments. Now I'm focusing on one department, something I have experience in. So it's like putting a fish back in the water. I can swim. I can swim. Well, it's me.” “I'll swim all the way up and down your street,” he said.

His top priority is to further reduce crime. Under White's leadership, violent crime in the city fell to its lowest level in six decades.

Bettison said violent crime has continued to decline since this time last year, with homicides down 18%, sexual assaults down 11%, robberies down 16%, burglaries down 2% and auto thefts down 11%. Bettison knows the job isn't done yet.

“The Detroit community complains about…cars running red lights and stop signs on side streets. And just so you know my superiors, I'm talking to my superiors, I'm going to tighten it up in terms of traffic enforcement,” Bettison said.

Bettison said he's also ready to tackle the fun stuff, too — like concerts and even a Super Bowl parade.

“You know what? You know what? When the Super Bowl was here in 2006, guess who was in charge of coordinating public safety and all that? It was me. It was me.”

Bettison said he expects to be around for a long time and is committed to increasing community involvement. One of the first things you can expect from him are safety tips on how to protect yourself from scams and robberies this holiday season.