As the city, state and nation celebrate Black History Month, the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department (IMPD) can point to some measurable moves toward diversity under top cop Chief Rick Hite.
They include an inaugural IMPD celebration of Black History Month; two recent, diverse recruit classes; and the first appointment of a Latino public information officer.
Black history celebrated
In 2015, for the first time, IMPD celebrates the historic achievements of African-American officers in both the police department and the Marion County Sheriff’s Office.
All are welcome to visit the exhibit organized by IMPD civilian employee Patrick Pearsey, at the City-County Building (200 E. Washington Street) between 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
“We owe a debt of gratitude for the selfless sacrifice of all police officers,” said Hite in a release. “Given the inherent struggles during the 1800s and 1900s we owe these African-American police officers a special honor.”
Those featured include Detective Benjamin Thornton, who was promoted in 1885. During Det. Thornton’s service to the Indianapolis community, he conducted over 400 arrests, solved homicide cases in 1888, 1890 and 1896. He was the seventh African-American police officer to join the Indianapolis Police Department.
Recruit diversity
IMPD continues to make history with recent recruit classes that are more diverse than ever before, according to IMPD Sgt. Kendale Adams. The 9th Recruit Class has 52 recruits, of which 12 were African-American, including 11 men, and one woman. It also included four Hispanic men, one Asian man, and eight white females. The balance of the class was 27 white males. This represented 48 percent of the recruits being minority and/or female.
The 10th Recruit Class had 26 recruits, of which eight were African-American men, two were Hispanic men, and one was a white female. The balance of the class was 15 white men. This represented roughly 42 percent of the class being minority or female, Adams said.
First Latino PIO
IMPD Public Information Officer Rafael Diaz, who was handpicked by Chief Hite, is the first Latino to be named a spokesman in the history of the department.
“I haven’t thought about being the first Latino officer,” commented Diaz, 28. “I just focus on representing the department well. It’s definitely a big responsibility to do the job I do for one of the biggest departments in the nation. I’m grateful and thankful to Chief Hite.”
Diaz, who was originally assigned to the city’s Eastside as a patrol officer, admitted he was initially “apprehensive” when approached by Hite.
“I wasn’t sure I was ready to leave the street. Chief Hite can be very convincing sometimes,” said Diaz with a smile. “We sat down and talked how great this opportunity could be for my career. I’m very grateful. I take a lot of pride in what I do. It’s a great responsibility to do what I do. I just want to make sure we’re sending the right message out to the community.”
The department tweets at: @IMPD_News and is on Facebook at Facebook.com/IMPDNews. For information about Crimestoppers, visit Crimetips.org.
