DETROIT (WWJ) — Deputy Mayor Todd Bettison is set to become Detroit’s Interim Police Chief, Mayor Mike Duggan announced Friday afternoon.
Bettison will replace Chief James White, who will leave the department next month after three years on the job as he becomes the new CEO of Detroit Wayne Integrated Health Network. Bettison will assume the role on Nov. 9.
The Detroit Board of Police Commissioners will conduct a national search for candidates to be the city’s next permanent chief of police. Under the city charter, the BOPC is required to conduct a national search for a replacement and recommend three candidates to the Mayor.
Bettison spent 27 years with DPD before leaving his role as assistant chief in 2022 to become deputy mayor. During his time in the mayor’s office, Bettison was involved in the implementation of “Shot Stoppers,” a community-based violence intervention program that Duggan said Friday is now gaining national recognition.
White said he expects "a seamless transition to one of the great sons of the city of Detroit."
"I hate to lose him as deputy mayor, but this job is so critical that I'm just so pleased we had somebody ready to step in," Duggan said.
Last week White accepted an offer to become the CEO of DWIHN, a non-profit organization that focuses on helping people with mental health issues.
White, a mental health counselor, has been Detroit’s top cop since he was appointed interim chief in June 2021. He assumed the full-time job that September.
During his time at the top of DPD, White started a unit called the Crisis Intervention Team, which partners with mental health professionals from DWIHN to respond to calls involving mental health crises, as well as a broader focus on mental health.
Speaking after his confirmation as CEO last Wednesday, White said he is “very humbled and honored with this board’s trust in me.”
“I look forward to this journey ahead. I know it will be challenging, but I’m excited. We have a good team here and I’m excited to roll up my sleeves and make an impact on mental health and work with the dynamic team that you already have in place and continue the great work that DWIHN has already done and make it even better,” White said.
During Friday's press conference, Duggan called back to the BOPC's last chief selection process when he was presented with three "outstanding" candidates, including White and former Ann Arbor Police Chief Mike Cox.
"I was so impressed with him I tried to convince him to come here as the No. 2. I wanted both White and Chief Cox. Chief Cox went to Boston, where they dropped homicides there. This process produced the two people who for the last couple years have been the two finest police chiefs in America," Duggan said.
"That's the way the Board of Police Commissioners operated the last time. I expect Interim Chief Bettison to compete in a process against the best in the country and we will see what comes out of that process."