Dallas PD Chief Hall defends first three months on job

Dallas Police Chief Renee Hall said the first three months of her tenure has been filled with people showing support -- and others not so much.

Despite false rumors that have swirled at times about her pending departure, the chief said Friday she is here to stay.

“I hear people are praying for the success of Dallas Police Department and happy that I’m aboard,” Hall said. “In that same breath, there are individuals who do not wish for my success and that challenge every single decision that I make and everything that I do -- but that is expected in law enforcement.”

Hall said she wasn’t surprised her honeymoon in Dallas was so short lived.

“You know it’s one of those things that when you know something is possible, you don’t put a timeline on when it’s going to happen. You recognize that you cannot make everybody happy,” Hall said.

The chief said rumors about her resigning and going back to Detroit started when she took some days off before thanksgiving to study for her law enforcement certification in Texas.

“I said I need to step back so I can take some time to actually study for the TCOLE exam that I have to take,” Hall said, adding that some people even thought she had taken the exam and failed.

Hall said the rumors were a distraction, but it doesn’t bother her.

“You don’t get to the top of an organization by having thin skin,” Hall said.

Hall passed on answering a question if the police associations in Dallas were more political than Detroit.

“I think that they have a role that they have to play as it relates to protecting the membership within and then they have to work to get along with the chief and work together to make decisions,” Hall said. “My goal is the police department, the chief and the associations will all strive for the same thing -- and that’s the greatness of this police department.”