08/28/03  Hiring/Firing Terrell Bolton

A good leader gains the respect of those he leads.  Harry Truman was an admired leader because he believed "the buck stopped with him".  He took full responsibility for decisions he made. 
   
Leaders have one thing in common --  a vision.  Their job is to make it come true and do what needs to be done to make it happen.  Rarely do they care about being misunderstood. 

Although he was clueless, I think Police Chief Terrell Bolton was fired because he he had not risen to the job after 4 years.  His inability to do the job of Police Chief was his downfall.

Terrell Bolton is a good man who was not qualified to be Chief of Police. The first hint of this was how soon after he was made chief, he demoted many qualified officers and replaced them with less qualified men and women.  In 1999 when he became Police Chief, most of us who know him supported him.  We wanted him to succeed and were behind him, but lawsuits costing taxpayers millions was a bad way to start his new position.

Police officers felt betrayed when they learned he was being paid overtime for visiting fallen officers at the hospital or funeral home.  Several officers have told me since they have instructed their families that should anything happen to them, they wanted to keep Chief Bolton away from them (hospital visits or funeral visitations).

Many citizens in Dallas were angry that whenever there was a problem, Chief Bolton always seem to be out of town to answer questions.  Leaders stick around to answer tough questions during a crisis.  A great leader  stands up no matter, like Mayor Gulliani.  He was the point person after 9/11.  All knew that things would be done because he was in charge, which earned him respect, even from those who did not like him.  

Difficult questions are accepted as part of the job.  A leader is never afraid of what will be asked of them. Unfortunately, Bolton never learned this after 4 years.  He never knew how to answer tough questions.  Therefore, he avoided them.  He came across as unprepared by always being out of town.  How long did he think he could get away doing this? 

It was sad for me to see that in the end Bolton still would not take any blame for some of the problems we have.  Instead he said our city was better, but that is not what FBI statistics show.  In his way of seeing things it was always someone or something, but never him that was the problem. 

As most of you know I have not approved of the work City Manager Ted Benavides has done for Dallas.  After what the City Manager did today, he has my respect because it was a necessary but tough thing to do.  He had no choice but to fire Chief Bolton.  How can a City Manager promote and invite corporations to relocate to Dallas when we have gotten the reputation of being number one in the country for violent crime?  

Crime is all too close to my heart since in a NW neighborhood near my home there have been 12 murders since February 25, 2003.  Prior Police Chiefs lost their jobs for lesser things than what Bolton was allowed to get away with. 

It has been distressing that for the last couple of years whenever we heard something about the Police Department, it dealt with some serious problem.  The Police Department must be well managed because it affects everyone.  Mr. Benavides took full responsibility for what he did, which is what the taxpayers of Dallas pay him to do.  Having done this hard thing, perhaps Mr. Benavides is finally going to show us he takes his job seriously and will no longer be the puppet that he has been in the past.

Mayor Miller has my respect.  She tries to do what benefits the entire city and shows no favoritism.  When crime became an issue, she decided to make this a priority.  The majority of Dallas citizens would agree that getting serious about crime was necessary. It is unfair to accuse her of firing Chief Bolton.  If he had been doing his job, Dallas would not lead crime as number one in the nation.  Since becoming mayor she has shown us that making Dallas what it once was is a priority with her.  

Mayor Miller is what we needed because for too long past mayors had agendas that benefited only a few.  Personally, I admire the way Mayor Miller does not fear answering tough questions or do what needs to be done.  We may not agree with everything she says or does.  But in the end we know that she wants to do what is best for all. The citizens of Dallas are lucky to have her as our leader.  Now more then ever before we need to support her because she is under unfair attack (although I know she feels that it comes with the job as mayor).

Dallas needs a new direction.  My prayer is that August 26, 2003 will be the beginning of a new era for Dallas.  It was on this day that the difficult decision was made by our City Manager to fire Police Chief Terrell Bolton.  Bolton had to be fired because he was not doing a good job as Police Chief and did not have the common sense to resign.  Bolton must have thought that his recent problems would pass.  After all, he had gotten away with not being accountable for his poor performance.  There had to be an end to his inability to take charge and do a good job. Private industry does this and that is what happens to any of us who are not qualified for a job.

Dallas is a great city.  We need to hire someone who is qualified to head our 2,900 Dallas Police Officers.  Everyone will win if our next Police Chief is hired on his qualifications alone.  Pray for all people mentioned above because at the end of the day, they are just like you and me.  I urge you to be part of the solution and not the problem when you get involved to make Dallas the best city in Texas.

            Mary Lou Montes Zijderveld