POLICE CHIEF TAKES LOW-KEY APPROACH

Atlanta Police Chief Richard Pennington's response when three of his
narcotics officers shot to death an elderly woman during a drug raid
last week was not out of character.

He was out of town, in New York for the Thanksgiving weekend, as he
was when another major event touched his agency. As soon as he got
back to Atlanta, Pennington asked state and federal investigators to
review what happened, agreed to interviews with select media outlets
and met with community leaders to assure them he would get the to
bottom of things.

Then he stepped away to await the outcome.

It was typical of the Richard Pennington who has been Atlanta's police
chief for 4 1/2 years, and it was typical of the Richard Pennington
who ran the at-times controversial New Orleans Police Department for
eight years.

Those who have worked with him in Louisiana and Atlanta assign the same
personal and professional styles to Pennington: low-key to the point
that he's almost "invisible," and more likely to delegate than take a
hands-on approach. Perhaps in keeping with that low profile, he
declined to be interviewed for this article.

Standing before an angry audience Tuesday night at a public forum
called to address Kathryn Johnston's death last week, Pennington took
all the verbal abuse the crowd could heap, responding only with
assurances to find the truth and punish the guilty.

"He doesn't visibly sweat or panic," said Michael Perlstein, a former
New Orleans Times-Picayune reporter who covered Pennington for eight
years.

"He likes a very controlled environment," said Perlstein, who now
teaches journalism at Loyola University in New Orleans. "He was never
one to shoot from the hip, to make impromptu comments. He's a big
believer in the chain of command, in letting his public information
office speak for him and the department. When he did make public
statements, they were carefully crafted."

Pennington honed his skills for 25 years as an officer with the
District of Columbia police department, moving through the ranks from
patrolman to assistant chief. He had applied for Washington's top cop
job and was a finalist for that position in Sacramento, Calif., in
1992. He was hired as superintendent in New Orleans in 1993.

Pennington believes in calling on consultants, particularly those who
preach the gospel of tracking crime statistics. He keeps a close watch
on crime patterns, requiring weekly meetings with commanders so they
explain any upticks in crime and how they plan to show a 5 percent
reduction from one year to the next.

And he delegates.

For example, Assistant Chief Alan Dreher was the face of the police
department at the first media briefings after Johnston was shot
because Pennington was in New York. Dreher also was the top police
official on the scene on March 11, 2005, when Brian Nichols escaped
from the Fulton County Courthouse after allegedly killing a judge and
two others. Pennington was vacationing in Mexico.

"He is somebody who is a great delegator of authority," Perlstein
said. "It worked for him in New Orleans in the sense that he allowed
officers under him, including top commanders, to be groomed for
leadership positions, to take credit while he remained largely behind
the scene. The downside was there were some critical moments when
people looked to the top for strong leadership and there were times
when he could almost be a little too low key for his own good."

Absent 'Way Too Much'

Criticism of Pennington often centers on his absences.

"He's out of town way too much," said Scott Kreher, president of the
local chapter of the International Brotherhood of Police Officers.
"He's worked hard at improving equipment but there are some issues
officers have with his absenteeism. ... He's not around when a lot of
major events go on."

Others say he's too focused on crime statistics and there is too much
emphasis on the numbers discussed at weekly meetings with zone
commanders and their staffs to review crime patterns.

New Orleans observers saw the downside of such emphasis on
computer-generated crime stats just after Pennington left for Atlanta.
Audits found some of the drop in crime in New Orleans could be
attributed to charges against suspects being reduced.

Rafael Goyeneche, president of the independent watchdog Metropolitan
Crime Commission in New Orleans, said there were several instances of
"misreporting" of crimes and the decline in crime statistics was
essentially "smoke and mirrors." One common tactic, Goyeneche said was
to record reports of thefts as "lost or stolen" property, a less
serious crime.

"There became a major emphasis on crime stats as the end all be all of
how effective the police department was," Goyeneche said. "There are
other indicators of the efficiency of the police department."

Atlanta Crime Drops

Atlanta also has had a drop in crime during Pennington's tenure. The
department's records show 41 percent fewer homicides last year when
compared to 2002. For those same years, rape was down 19 percent,
robbery dropped 31 percent, aggravated assault fell 25 percent and
burglaries declined 22 percent. But also at that time, Kreher notes,
public housing complexes were being razed.

"About 80 percent of those residents were relocated," Kreher said.
"That had significant impact on crime and he's been able to ride that
wave for a few years and it's finally bottomed out."

Police numbers for the first nine months this year show increases in
homicides, aggravated assaults and burglaries compared to the same
time last year.

Kreher said some officers are critical of Pennington's
style.

"He's good at surrounding himself with people who make things happen.
But I don't see any hands on. He might be the master ring-leader, but
I don't see him participating in the day-to-day operations as he
should. The men and women say we don't see him unless something bad is
going on."