The most successful public sector leaders today are ones that have the capacity to lead internally and externally. They are able to see and understand the inherent contradictions in their multiple roles. For instance, appeasing the community with a more humanistic approach to policing, while getting tough on crime; giving the community a greater role in police affairs, but maintaining the autonomy to make unilateral decisions; supporting tough actions against bad cops to appease the community while steadfastly defending the rank and file. These are scenarios that are difficult for police chiefs to reconcile. This book examines how chiefs of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) have attempted to reconcile contradictory objectives. It explores the history of leadership in this famed police department, analyzing the leadership styles of its contemporary chiefs. This book explores the leader's capacity to walk the public leadership tightrope. This exercise is the most important task of any public sector leader. As one of the most highly profiled public agencies in the U.S., the LAPD has embraced many contradictions. The department has been a model of professionalism and misconduct. The LAPD has been at the center of many of the nation's most racially explosive experiences: the 1965 Watts riots, the Rodney King beating and subsequent 1992 riots, and the O.J. Simpson case. Additionally, the Rampart Scandal was one of the biggest police corruption scandals in the nation. Because of its proximity to Hollywood, the contradictory culture of the LAPD has been exposed in television and film. Indeed, America has become familiar with the LAPD through its periodic scandals and by its media and popular culture profile. Specifically tailored for students of criminal justice and public administration, this book examines the ways in which the LAPD's leaders have attempted to navigate crisis after crisis. Author Renford Reese uses interviews with thirty LAPD officers of various rankings and several Los Angeles residents to tell the riveting LAPD story.
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"The average reader will get a solid picture of the men in charge of the LAPD, the issues they grappled with, and some of their successes and failures . . . [T]he book is informative and even entertaining." --Journal of Criminal Justice and Popular Culture
About the Author
Renford Reese is an Associate Professor at Cal Poly Pomona and the Director of the Colorful Flags Program.
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In 1996, Renford Reese received his Ph.D. in public policy from the University of Southern California. He received his Master's degree in public policy from the Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies and his B.A. in political science from Vanderbilt University.
Dr. Reese grew up in McDonough, Georgia. His father, Earnest Reese, was one of the first African American journalists to write for a major newspaper in the South, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. His mother, Artelia Reese, a descendant of the much talked about Pettway's of Gee's Bend, was his high school principal. When Dr. Reese was growing up in the early 1970's his hometown was still partially segregated by railroad tracks. Because most of the blacks were forced to live in a certain area of the town, his community was labeled "Blacksville" on the town's map.
As an African-American boy of 12 years old, he did a seventh grade social science project on "gerrymandering" in his town. He became infuriated at the constructed division between the black and white communities. He also became disgruntled with the lack of dialogue between these communities. At a very early age, he realized that he would like to dedicate his life to issues that help people of different races bridge gaps of mistrust.
He did his doctoral dissertation research on intergroup relations and ethnic conflict at the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development in Geneva, Switzerland. In 1993, as a second year doctoral student and a "Presidential Fellow" at USC, he created the acclaimed Colorful Flags program. The tragic death of Latasha Harlins in South Central Los Angeles and his dissatisfaction with race relations prompted him to create this multiethnic human relations module. Today, this program has serviced approximately 130,000 K-12 students in 17 school districts in California. This program has also been implemented in police departments, hospitals, and various other organizations. Reese wrote the play "Bus Stop Soliloquy," which is a candid depiction of ethnic relations in the U.S. This play was produced as the short film, Life Ain't No Crystal Stair, by Emmy Award winner, Saul Landau.
Dr. Reese is currently a professor in the political science department at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He is the author of American Bravado (2007), Prison Race (2006), Leadership in the LAPD: Walking the Tightrope (2005), and American Paradox: Young Black Men (2004). He is also the author of the Starbucks "The Way I See It" quote #294: "Insensitivity makes arrogance ugly; empathy is what makes humility beautiful." Reese has traveled to 58 countries and has given lectures in many of them. In 2009, he was awarded the prestigious Fulbright Scholars Award to lecture in the American Studies program at the University of Hong Kong. While in Hong Kong, Reese was inspired to write his first novel, "Hong Kong Nights." He was recently featured on ESPN's "Living the Dream" Black History Month series.
Dr. Reese grew up in McDonough, Georgia. His father, Earnest Reese, was one of the first African American journalists to write for a major newspaper in the South, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. His mother, Artelia Reese, a descendant of the much talked about Pettway's of Gee's Bend, was his high school principal. When Dr. Reese was growing up in the early 1970's his hometown was still partially segregated by railroad tracks. Because most of the blacks were forced to live in a certain area of the town, his community was labeled "Blacksville" on the town's map.
As an African-American boy of 12 years old, he did a seventh grade social science project on "gerrymandering" in his town. He became infuriated at the constructed division between the black and white communities. He also became disgruntled with the lack of dialogue between these communities. At a very early age, he realized that he would like to dedicate his life to issues that help people of different races bridge gaps of mistrust.
He did his doctoral dissertation research on intergroup relations and ethnic conflict at the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development in Geneva, Switzerland. In 1993, as a second year doctoral student and a "Presidential Fellow" at USC, he created the acclaimed Colorful Flags program. The tragic death of Latasha Harlins in South Central Los Angeles and his dissatisfaction with race relations prompted him to create this multiethnic human relations module. Today, this program has serviced approximately 130,000 K-12 students in 17 school districts in California. This program has also been implemented in police departments, hospitals, and various other organizations. Reese wrote the play "Bus Stop Soliloquy," which is a candid depiction of ethnic relations in the U.S. This play was produced as the short film, Life Ain't No Crystal Stair, by Emmy Award winner, Saul Landau.
Dr. Reese is currently a professor in the political science department at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. He is the author of American Bravado (2007), Prison Race (2006), Leadership in the LAPD: Walking the Tightrope (2005), and American Paradox: Young Black Men (2004). He is also the author of the Starbucks "The Way I See It" quote #294: "Insensitivity makes arrogance ugly; empathy is what makes humility beautiful." Reese has traveled to 58 countries and has given lectures in many of them. In 2009, he was awarded the prestigious Fulbright Scholars Award to lecture in the American Studies program at the University of Hong Kong. While in Hong Kong, Reese was inspired to write his first novel, "Hong Kong Nights." He was recently featured on ESPN's "Living the Dream" Black History Month series.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent book on leadership,
By K.J.A. "KJA" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Leadership in the LAPD: Walking the Tightrope (Paperback)
Dr. Reese draws exceptional conclusions about the need for high ranking public administrators in the public eye, such as LAPD police chiefs, to balance the fine line between sticking up for the staff of the organization and maintaining a positive public image. The book highlights the careers of several modern day police chiefs in the Los Angeles Police Department and provides an explanation of why each had fallen out of favor by being forced to or unable to "walk the tightrope". The book is exceptional as an historical overview of the LA police force, as a manual on organizational crisis management, and as a piece to begin evaluating one's own role and style within their organization, whether public or private. It will be interesting to use the assertions posited in this book to evaluate the performance of Chief Bratton in the days ahead - he seemed to have sided with the public on the May Day controversy by condemning his own officers, but it will be interesting see how he will handle the next LAPD crisis.
1.0 out of 5 stars
Interesting, but very biased.,
This review is from: Leadership in the LAPD: Walking the Tightrope (Paperback)
Reese's book is interesting, but in the end, in terms of corruption and brutality, it is very biased and chooses to use the "bad apples" theory as a scapegoat why corruption/brutality happens (this is what the city of Los Angeles and the LAPD commonly cite as the rationale for corruption and brutality). The book is somewhat dry, and while it builds good arguments, it fails at delivering them with good evidence and style. If you're looking for an unbiased (or at least an attempt at unbiased) look at the L.A.P.D and corruption, check out The Thin Blue Line: An In-depth Look at the Policing Practices of the Los Angeles Police Department (Volume 1). It's much more interesting and detailed, and doesn't necessarily side with the LAPD.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic Book on Leadership.,
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This review is from: Leadership in the LAPD: Walking the Tightrope (Paperback)
Based on interviews with several LAPD officers this is a superb book--one of the best books that I have ever read on leadership.
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