New Louisville Police Chief sworn in

LOUISVILLE, KY. (WDRB) -- Louisville officially has a new police chief. Mayor Greg Fischer swore Steve Conrad in at a ceremony Monday afternoon.

This is Conrad's first day on the job. He says, "I've had the opportunity to meet with a couple members of my executive staff. I got handed keys to my car. They showed me how to log onto the computer."

Conrad says he has been homesick for awhile and is glad to be back. He was born and raised in Louisville and served as assistant police chief here before becoming chief of Glendale, Arizona's police force.

Conrad says he understand the issues Louisville is facing, and he's already setting goals for the department and the city hoping to make Louisville the safest city in America.

He says, "Over the next ninety days, I'll be working to meet with members of the community to meet with our officers to gather their ideas on things we can do better."

Conrad says he wants LMPD officers to be a part of the neighborhoods they serve, and he plans to use a variety of policing methods, learned from several people.

That includes former Chief Robert White who left last year to take the police chief job in Denver, Colorado. Conrad says, "Chief White is a friend and a mentor. There were many things he did and I can point to every boss that I worked for.... I learned things from Captain Thompson that I liked. I learned things from Chief White that I liked."

Click here for an earlier story, including slideshow, on the new chief.

In his resume, Conrad cited his "leadership, oversight, and strategic direction" of the Glendale department as reasons he should be considered for the LMPD chief's post. He also mentioned creating a Gang-Fugitive Squad, along with other squads dedicated to fraud, downtown safety, robbery, and other community concerns.

In community forums looking at what concerns a new LMPD chief should have, a number of people mentioned making officers more visible in neighborhoods and reviving LMPD street violence and gang units.