By Sean Webby
San Jose Mercury News
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The biggest news at San Jose police Chief Chris Moore’s swearing-in ceremony Thursday may have been who administered the oath of office.
In a move heavy on symbolism, Moore was sworn in by former Judge LaDoris Cordell, the city’s official police watchdog whose office had a rocky relationship with Moore’s predecessor, Rob Davis.
Moore asked Cordell to perform the honors, and Cordell spoke words of encouragement and praise during an event at City Hall. It remains to be seen if the gesture helps usher in a new era of cooperation between the Independent Police Auditor and the police department or whether it’s merely window dressing. Even so, the two seem to have started off on a positive note.
“It is clear that these are challenging and controversial times. I believe that Chief Moore is up to the challenge,” Cordell said.
“Chief, it is because you and I share the goal of maintaining a stellar police department, and the goal of rebuilding trust between law enforcement and the community, that I accepted your invitation to administer the oath of office to you. I wish you the best as you officially and courageously embark upon this challenging sojourn.”
After the oath, Cordell high-fived the new chief to the delight of a City Council chambers crowded with police brass from many departments, city officials and county dignitaries.
Moore thanked Cordell and underlined the importance of community trust in a time of deep budget cuts: “With fewer officers, it is critical that the community become engaged with us in a strong partnership.’'
Major city police chiefs are often sworn in by mayors in ceremonies that are more about political theater than policing. In this case, Moore’s surprising choice of the city’s top cop watcher to administer his oath was meant by the participants -- and generally accepted by others -- as a sign of detente. The two agencies have in recent years been at serious loggerheads on police accountability and the underlying authority of the IPA, which monitors disciplinary investigations by the department’s Internal Affairs unit. Barbara Attard, Cordell’s predecessor, was bounced by city leaders in 2008 after openly battling with Moore’s predecessor, Davis.
Attard said that she could never have imagined a similar invitation from Davis.
“We would swear a little differently,’' she said, laughing. “I think that (Cordell) has a lot of integrity and stature; swearing him in won’t mean that there is an inappropriate alliance there. I think it’s important recognition for the IPA office, a sign that the office is important.’'
Cordell underscored the open conflict between Attard and Davis as a rationale of her unusual choice: “In light of recent history, the symbolism of the two of us, the IPA and the Chief of Police, standing together, is a powerful and positive statement that the building of a better relationship between law enforcement and the community is underway.’'
Walter Wilson, a community activist and frequent critic of the police department, said Moore’s choice of Cordell was “refreshing.”
“The last chief and the IPA refused to work together on anything, and that wasn’t useful for civil rights or social justice at all,’' Wilson said. “We want them to be independent of each other, but the IPA and police chief have begun a relationship in an atmosphere where they respect each other’s professional positions, and from that maybe something constructive can come out of that for all of our community.’'
Moore has already made several other steps to rectify the department’s clear credibility gap with some of the city’s minority communities. He is creating a police chief’s community advisory board, has broadened the department’s definition of racial profiling and stopped a policy of impounding cars for 30 days from unlicensed drivers who have been pulled over for minor traffic stops, a practice thought to unfairly target undocumented Latinos.
Copyright 2011 San Jose Mercury News