Interview: Deputy Inspector Tito Romero, The New Commanding Officer Of The 71st Precinct
In an exclusive interview, CrownHeights.info sat down with Crown Heights’s new Commanding Officer of the 71st Police Precinct, Deputy Inspector Tito Romero to discuss his new position, and his plans for protecting the community.
Q: Can you tell me something about yourself, and what brought you here to the 71st Precinct?
A: First off, thank you for taking your time to come speak with me. I was actually born her in the 71st precinct. My parents lived at 881 Washington Ave, so something in the 71st Precinct just keeps bringing me back.
My position here is actually unusual, as most commanding officers get to see their commands for the first time. This is actually my third time here, as I was an officer and captain here before. I left my captain position in the 71st in 2017, and now I am back as the commanding officer. Being back here it’s a little different, since I see a lot of the same people I worked with when I was an officer. It feels good too though, its almost like coming home.
Q: What are your thoughts on the condition of the 71st Precinct command as you step into the position?
A: I’ve been here before, and I think the 71st Precinct is doing great. I think Brooklyn south as a whole is doing great. The 71st Precinct has shown this past year to have seen a decline in violent crime, as well as almost a hundred less of the seven major crimes than years prior. Those are murder, rape, robbery, assault, GLA, burglery, and grand larceny. My predecessor, Frank Giordano did a great job, and before him Norman Grandstaff did a great job as well.
Q: What about petty crimes being committed in the community?
A: Geographically, the 71st Precinct its a big residential community. As in any residential community you are always going to have your car breaks and petty crimes. As I have only been here a week, it will take some time to look at things analytically and break things down. With only having seen the reports for one day, things look good.
Q: What is your plan for your new command over the next few years?
A: Barring any unforeseen things, I will be here for two years. Obviously we want to keep crimes low, especially violent crimes. As you touched upon, quality of life crimes are very important. You could have robberies or shootings, but at community meetings residents care about their blocked driveway, who broke into their car, why are cars driving so fast, and other issues like homelessness.
That’s where the NYPD’s NCO program steps in. There was great vision in switching over that program, since it gives people the opportunity to speak to “their own cop”. When have we ever had that opportunity before? You have your cops phone number and their email, and you can reach out to them. They do everything from dealing with petty crimes to mediation. I think its a great program that brought the NYPD closer to the communities it services. It makes these officers not just a shield or a patch, but also brings a human face.
Q: With the great divide between the Orthodox Jewish community and the other residents of Crown Heights, what are your thoughts on how the sectarian lines are drawn?
A: The divisions in any community are bridged by the liaisons and community leaders. The leaders of the Crown Heights communities do have good relations with each other and speak often. Its up to them to pull the rest of the community into open dialogue. Its really outside the job of the NYPD.
Q: A hot topic now is the new Justice Reforms, and changes to the bail laws. How are you planning to handle the changes it will bring?
A: The reforms are really a bigger issue for the District Attorney’s office than they are for the police. For us it will be business as usual. For those that commit an arrestable offense, we will continue to arrest them. One change will be that they will now be released from the precinct rather than by a judge. In terms of bail, the police never sets bail, that’s the Judge and the DA’s office.
Q: Recently, Crown Heights had an assailant who had assaulted three Jewish woman on Kingston Ave, and was arrested. She was set free back onto the streets soon after. How can the community feel safe with such a state of affairs?
A: I’m sure once the reforms are in full swing we will have a clearer picture. It’s kind of one of those things that we will have to look at and see where it leads us. It remains to be seen what, if any, problems arise with it, and needs to be looked at analytically. We don’t have a crystal ball, we can’t see where this will lead. With petty crimes what we see with the justice reforms had pretty much already been the case. I’m not sure that the “pendulum” should have swing that far extreme, so it’s going to be a wait and see approach. The changes are not just a city thing, they are state wide. We don’t want to see the perpetrator let out even before the victim has finished the paperwork, but the decision is really outside of the Police Department.
Q: Do you have anything you would like to say directly to the Crown Heights community?
A: I am happy to be back and it really does feel like home. We will continue to do a great job, and Inspector Romero does not tolerate hate of any kind. We are putting out extra patrols to combat the spike in hate crimes. But most of all, I want the community to know that I am here for you.
