"My last working day will be Friday, November 16, 2007," Hegerty's news release read. "There is much work to be done before my retirement in November."
Hegerty's work ethic is highly praised by public officials and private citizens alike. Many expect her to work up to her last working day, as she promised.
However, others say that the department will become a lame duck as higher-ups vie for the open position and Hegerty wraps up her tenure.
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When Milwaukee Police Chief Nannette Hegerty announced Jan. 5 that she plans to retire, she stressed that she would work until her very last day on the job.
"My last working day will be Friday, November 16, 2007," Hegerty's news release read. "There is much work to be done before my retirement in November."
Hegerty's work ethic is praised by public officials and private citizens alike. Many expect her to work up to her last day, as she promised.
However, others say the Milwaukee Police Department will become a lame duck as higher-ups vie for the open position and Hegerty wraps up her tenure.
Whatever they believe will happen in the next 11 months, almost everyone seems to agree that the past three years have been very productive ones for Hegerty.
Triumphs and trials
As the first woman to ever hold the position in Milwaukee, Hegerty's 2003 swearing-in was historic. Hegerty, 56, shook up the department from that moment on.
"She's done a lot to change the culture of the police department. She's made it more open and responsive," said Steven Brandl, associate professor of criminal justice at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. "I think most officers saw her as a breath of fresh air."
Hegerty made hiring practices more accountable with tougher background checks and brought the department up to cutting-edge technology, such as portable fingerprinting labs and upgraded software to track squad cars.
"She inherited a number of challenges when she came on," said Alderman Bob Donovan of the Eighth District and chair of the Common Council's Public Safety Committee. "But overall she did a good job handling them."
During her tenure, Hegerty was sometimes forced to play both good cop and bad cop.
"She treated her officers as professionals," Brandl said. "But when they screwed up, she held them accountable."
Perhaps Hegerty's greatest test came when a group of MPD officers were accused of brutally beating Frank Jude Jr. outside a party held at an off-duty officer's home in October 2004.
In January 2006, Hegerty fired nine police officers connected with the case.
In her own words
Answering questions from reporters Thursday prior to addressing the Public Safety Committee, Hegerty defended her stance on internal discipline.
"The Milwaukee Police Department is a hardworking department," she said. "I can't let a few ruin that."
Hegerty also continued to stress that while her retirement is less than one year away, she is still working hard.
"I'm focused on the department," she said. "I'm not retiring yet."
When asked about her achievements, Hegerty didn't point to specifics.
"I'll never accomplish all I want to accomplish," Hegerty said. "But I feel comfortable handing over the reigns."
Looking for a leader
The Fire and Police Commission is in charge of finding Hegerty's replacement. The commission will ask for community input in the coming months and then begin the search. It will appoint the new chief at the beginning of November.
"I hope they choose someone who will continue on Chief Hegerty's path," Brandl said. "They should be looking for someone not that much different from her."
Donovan stressed that the new chief should have strength and communication skills.
"The city is experiencing a public safety crisis," Donovan said. "We need a leader, someone with a vision and a strategy of policing that will restore order. We need someone who can work with all segments of the community but won't cave in, someone with strong character who won't blow with the wind."
Donovan said he believes the commission should look for the new chief inside and outside MPD.
"First and foremost, we have to get the right person," he said.
Hegerty said Thursday that she would prefer her replacement to come from within the department. An outsider would take a while to get to know the people, history and inner workings of the department, she said.
Hegerty also said she was willing to share her thoughts and opinions with the commission about the search for a new chief.
"But it's not my job to choose the next one," she said.
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