GREENSBORO, NC - With less than two months on the job, Greensboro Police Chief Kamran Afzal is making changes to various policies, including where officers carry their Tasers.
Officers with the Greensboro Police Department (GPD) are now required to carry their Tasers on the opposite side of their firearms, according to Police1. Afzal said that the change in departmental policy is in line with best practices. "It wasn’t really anything earth shattering,” Afzal said.
“I don’t want to have an issue where we accidentally pull a handgun out instead of a Taser because they’re on the same side. We train that way and we just give our officers the ability to put it on either side but I was like, ‘Well, if we train that way, then we need to go ahead and apply policy saying it needs to be on the opposite side of where your strong side is,'" he added.
The new police chief, who was sworn in on May 12, also alluded to controversy over incidents in which officers had drawn guns instead of Tasers. One of the biggest controversies happened in 2021 in Minnesota when Officer Kim Potter shot and killed Daunte Wright, though the chief did not specifically mention this incident. Potter, who was ultimately convicted of manslaughter, said she had intended to use her Taser.
When it comes to any additional potential policy changes, Afzal said he will be taking some time in order to get a long-term perspective. "I was looking at how we do problem solving on a month-to-month basis and setting expectations that what I expect from my command staff is identifying patterns and identifying to what they are doing to address those patterns,” he said.
Afzal brings more than three decades of law enforcement experience to the job, according to WFMY2 News. He started his career with the U.S. Capitol Police before spending 24 years with the Arlington County Police Department in Virginia. He later led departments in Durango, Colorado; Hopewell, Virginia; and Dayton, Ohio.
Afzal says several other practices are under review, including how internal investigations are conducted and how discipline is applied across the department. "I don't want an inconsistency on what the punishment might be," he said.
Afzal says one of the biggest lessons from his first month or so on the job as been identifying patterns behind crime instead of focusing solely on crime numbers.
"I don't really necessarily judge my staff on crime going up or down because crime is too complex," the chief said. Instead, he wants commanders to identify recurring problems and explain what strategies they are using to address them. That approach, he said, helped reduce crime in Dayton.
"It's not about reducing crime," Afzal said. "It is on identifying patterns and then working together with your partners to address those things." Afzal also says that one that weighs on him is ensuring officers do the right thing, even when no one is watching. "We need to do the right thing every single time," he said.
He pointed to body cameras, internal audits and accountability systems as key tools for maintaining public trust. He also offered a message he says he regularly shares with officers. "I love my officers, and I tell them I have their back," Afzal said. "But my love is conditional. It is conditional upon them following policy, procedures, doing things legally and ethically."
Comments