New Orleans Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson says he's walking away from the NOPD on his own accord.
During a news conference at NOPD headquarters on Wednesday, Ferguson said Mayor LaToya Cantrell did not ask him to resign or retire. In fact, Ferguson says he consulted with Mayor LaToya Cantrell about his decision to walk away from the department after 24 years on the force and nearly four years as its top cop.
"I had this conversation with the mayor prior to Thanksgiving," Ferguson said. "I'll be frank with you: I had this thought and consideration throughout the budget process, and I finally had a conversation with the mayor and said, 'Hey. This is what I'm thinking about.' She asked me to take the Thanksgiving holidays to discuss it with my family, to possibly reconsider, and to really put things into perspective throughout the Thanksgiving holidays. At the end of the holidays, I made the decision.
"It's time to go home," Ferguson added. "It's time to sit back (and) look at what I have done. It's time to enjoy my life--not that I've not been able to do so, but in a different way."
Ferguson says he decided to retire now so he could take care of himself and his family.
"I've had some challenges within my family and with myself healthwise, so it's time to focus on my family and myself," Ferguson said. "I'm just looking at an opportunity to start 2023 with a new me. That's what it's all about."
Ferguson acknowledged that the political environment surrounding the NOPD is "toxic." He still called on city leaders to work together and improve the lines of communications between each other to do right by the officers of the NOPD and all of the people of the city of New Orleans.
"It's not about our own personal agendas," Ferguson said. "It's about the citizens and the visitors of New Orleans. We have to work with one another. We have to agree to disagree.
"I am urging our leaders to do just that. Come to the table. Stop this political showmanship. Come to the table and have a conversation. Be grown men and grown women and talk about the issues and see how we can come to a resolution together."
According to Mayor LaToya Cantrell's office, Ferguson's final walk as NOPD superintendent will take place on Thursday, December 22 at 11 a.m. Cantrell has not indicated yet who she might appoint to succeed Ferguson. While Ferguson declined to identify who he thought might be the department's next leader, he said he knows the next superintendent is already working for the NOPD.
"I think every deputy chief that has worked with me deserves an opportunity," Ferguson said. "It is not my responsibility to determine or decide if they are a good person, but what I can say is: whoever is selected, I will be here to assist them during their transition while on the job and even after leaving the job.
"The best person for the New Orleans Police Department is within the New Orleans Police Department," Ferguson said. "We don't have to go anywhere to look for anyone to lead this department. We have great men and women who work for this department and that can lead this department."
