Charles A. McClelland Jr. was the police chief of the Houston Police Department (HPD) from 2010 through 2016. Joining the department in May 1977, McClelland worked his way up through the ranks, from rookie to assistant chief in 1998,McClelland Confirmed As HPD Chief
before being asked to step in as acting chief. A graduate of the University of , University of , and the FBI National Academy,New HPD Chief Officially Sworn In
/ref> he oversaw the department's implementation of tasers
/ref> and a real-time crime analysis program.

Education

McClelland holds a bachelor's degree in criminology from the

University of Houston–Downtown The University of Houston–Downtown (UHD) is a public university in Houston, Texas, United States. Established in 1974 as University of Houston–Downtown College (UH–DC), it has a campus that spans in Downtown Houston with a satellite loc ...

and a master's degree in sociology from the

University of Houston–Clear Lake The University of Houston–Clear Lake (UHCL) is a public university in Pasadena, Texas, Pasadena and Houston in Texas, with branch campuses in Pearland, Texas, Pearland and Texas Medical Center. It is part of the University of Houston System, U ...

, and a graduate from the FBI National Academy.

Career

McClelland became a patrol officer in May 1977, and worked his way up through assignments with sex crimes units and the homicide division.Pinkerton, James.
New HPD Chief McClelland no stranger to obstacles
" ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Houston, Texas, United States. it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. ...

''. April 14, 2010. Retrieved on April 26, 2010. When racial tensions at the city's Northeast Patrol Division boiled over in 1992, McClelland and Capt. Mike Thaler were brought in to remedy discrimination complaints by black patrolmen. As an assistant chief, he has been at the center of some of HPD's most controversial incidents of recent years, one being the approval of the August 2002 raid on a Kmart parking lot where nearly 300 bystanders were arrested during a crackdown on street racing. McClelland later testified he never saw a subsequent memo authorizing the arrests of spectators as well as racers. He also oversaw the department's implementation of

taser Taser (stylized in all caps) is a line of handheld conducted energy devices (CED) sold by Axon Enterprise (formerly Taser International). The device fires two small barbed darts intended to puncture the skin and remain attached to the targe ...

s and a real-time crime analysis program, which allows for improved overall crime tracking and analysis 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Known as a meticulous investigator, McClelland was brought into one patrol division to quell racial tensions. Before becoming acting police chief (after the resignation of Chief Harold Hurtt prior to Mayor Bill White leaving office in late 2009 after 3 two year terms under the City of Houston term limit ordinance), McClelland oversaw HPD's investigative operations as an executive assistant chief, which include 1,500 officers, 12 divisions and a $117 million budget.Pinkerton, James and Bradley Olson.
His dream just got bigger
" ''

''. March 31, 2010. Retrieved on April 26, 2010. Mayor Annise Parker confirmed him as chief in early 2010 until his 2016 retirement when Parker's successor (Sylvester Turner) became mayor).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McClelland, Charles Houston Police Department chiefs Living people People from Center, Texas African-American police officers FBI National Academy graduates University of Houston–Downtown alumni University of Houston–Clear Lake alumni Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century African-American people