St. Paul police's new top leadership team lacks Black officers

The new assistant and deputy chiefs of the St. Paul Police Department boast a breadth of experience, but advocates are concerned by the lack of Black officers included in those top ranks.

Newly appointed Police Chief Axel Henry introduced the team in a staff email sent Dec. 13. In it, Henry thanked the leadership team that served with interim Police Chief Jeremy Ellison and said that his decisions were not based on anyone's failure.

"My goal is to create opportunity, clarity, and a stable transition regarding the leadership changes in our organization," Henry's email said. "As I have said many times, this is an aircraft carrier, not a Jet Ski, so changes need to be done incrementally and without undue stress on the department."

The team, which includes an assistant chief and four deputy chiefs, will help Henry transition into his new role as police chief, a move that's been repeated by SPPD chiefs before him. But some community leaders say that Henry's leadership team falls short of including diverse voices.

Tyrone Terrill is president of the African American Leadership Council, a St. Paul-based team which brings leaders in the Black community together to collaborate and share information. Terrill said they are disappointed by the lack of Black voices on the Police Department's leadership team, and they want Carter and Henry to reconsider.

"The community that has supported SPPD more than any other community in the past 30 years has been told by chief Henry to wait 12-24 months when we have two qualified African American candidates already in the ranks of SPPD," Terrill said. "I am asking chief Henry and Mayor Melvin Carter to re-evaluate this decision and make diversity, equity and inclusion real in SPPD as we cannot afford to 'wait and be [patient]' two-and-half years after the murder of Brother George Floyd."

Sgt. Mike Ernster, a department spokesman, said the department has two high-ranking Black officers serving in the senior commander and commander positions, and that the goal is for officers to gain well-rounded experience before advancing.

"The good news is we have a bright future and these commanders will be here for a long time, but they're still developing their career," he said.

Black officers have long been represented among the department's highest ranks. Former Chief Todd Axtell had appointed Don Benner, a Black, second-generation police officer, to his leadership team before retiring. Axtell did not have a Black deputy chief or assistant chief assigned during the first four years of his tenure. Before him, SPPD was led by Thomas Smith, John Harrington and William Finney — all of whom were Black.

Although the new leadership team starts Dec. 31, their roles can be changed or moved over time. There are no minimum number of years required for officers to climb leadership positions, but Henry said in a statement that the department prefers that officers — even those new in their careers — build experience across different roles before leading others,

"Career and leadership development for all employees is something I care deeply about. This is particularly important for our command staff, of which over 50 percent have two years of experience or less," Henry said. "This is a challenge that precedes my appointment as chief one month ago. Like recruitment, leadership development at every rank has great value and meaning to me. Especially at the highest ranks of our agency."

Carter backed Henry in a statement, saying he supports the appointments.

"Our police department is one of the finest agencies on the planet, thanks to a long history of strong & capable leadership," Carter said. "I am confident in our leadership team's ability to continue that tradition, while reestablishing our focus on developing the diverse pool of leaders who will guide the department into the future."

The chief's announcement follows a tumultuous time for St. Paul. An officer is on administrative leave after fatally shooting Howard Johnson, a 24-year-old Black man, and a shooting in the Payne-Phalen neighborhood Monday marked a record 39 homicides for the capital city. A Star Tribune database showed that many of this year's victims were Black people, and most died from gunfire.

The chiefs on Henry's team are: