When he stepped down as Baltimore’s police commissioner this summer, Michael Harrison said he wanted to take a breather before figuring out what was next.
Now, his post-Baltimore plans are taking shape. Harrison and his wife have since relocated back to New Orleans, and Harrison is parlaying his experience in two cities under court-mandated reforms into related consulting work.
Since October, Harrison said he has been working as a consultant with the Department of Justice on the pattern or practice investigation of the Memphis Police Department, which was sparked by the killing of Tyre Nichols. Such investigations are often a precursor to a consent decree, which Harrison navigated in both Baltimore and New Orleans.
He’s one of two former police chiefs taking part in the Memphis review.
“Many of the questions and the things that investigating attorneys need to ask, we help formulate those questions and we kind of lead the interviews,” Harrison said in an interview. “That’s been interesting.”
He said he’s also been in talks to join the consent decree monitoring team in Chicago, and is leading a team that are among three finalists to be the monitor in Minneapolis. For the latter, he’s part of a group called Effective Law Enforcement for All, which formed in New Orleans, and will take part in community interviews next month.
Read More
To be sure, nearly seven years into its consent decree, Baltimore has yet to achieve full compliance with the mandated reforms, and in some cases remains significantly behind on meeting a variety of targets, though Harrison, who was in charge for 4½ years, was cheered for his efforts.
Still, there’s a lucrative cottage industry of former law enforcement officials and attorneys who are involved with reform efforts across the country. Harrison confirmed he is working directly with 21st Century Policing Solutions, a police reform group that is part of Baltimore’s monitoring team. He said he’s working with them on an assessment of the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority Police Department.
This week, Harrison was also formally introduced as a liaison to law enforcement for the Orleans Parish District Attorney’s Office. He said he’s known District Attorney Jason Williams since Williams graduated law school and Harrison completed the police academy.
Harrison said he’ll be providing “quality assurance on criminal cases to ensure the Police Department is producing the best possible cases for prosecution.” He’ll also be working with community groups and city government.
“We have now debunked that you can’t have success in preventing and reducing crime while reforming a department at the same time. We’ve now proved that in two urban cities,” Harrison said. “But it can’t be police alone. It takes all of city government with all city agencies to help mitigate problems in a community or particular area, along with police, along with community, and along with prosecutors in a collaborative partnership.”
Baltimore struggled with a record-high homicide rate during much of Harrison’s tenure, though this year the city is seeing a 20% decline and will fall under 300 victims for the first time in nearly a decade. When Harrison left New Orleans, the city had marked its lowest homicide total in nearly a half-century.
Amid his new roles, Harrison is maintaining one connected to Baltimore: as a mentor to Police Commissioner Richard Worley. He says they continue to speak about once a week.
“I’ve called to check on him, and he has called to seek advice and guidance,” Harrison said. “He is willing and eager to learn.”
