Peoria’s outgoing police chief reflected on his tenure as the city’s top law enforcement officer, thanking citizens for embracing him and trusting him through their challenges.
Eric Echevarria, who plans to retire as chief on May 15, said during Friday’s meeting of the Peoria Safety Network that he felt he had left the city in a better place than it was when he arrived from the Elgin Police Department. He said now was the right time to step aside for his assistant chief, Brad Dixon.
“I can’t do another four years,” Echevarria said, noting that his son was just about to enter high school in the coming year. “I can’t commit to another four years and I’m not pulling him out of school. So, it’s going to be Brad’s turn and I’m very confident in Brad’s abilities (as) to what he’s going to do. I’m so happy for him, but I’ll be waiting by my phone in a month or two when he’s stressed out and needs to vent. That’s OK, I’m a good phone-a-friend.”
Echevarria said he didn’t know a lot about Peoria when he arrived in 2021. Over the years, he learned plenty, including the fact that it was the hometown of comedian Richard Pryor. That made it all the more special to him when Pryor’s son contacted him upon hearing the news of his departure.
“To show up and almost five years later, Richard Pryor, Jr. is sending me a message when I’m retiring, I’m like, ‘Wow,'” Echevarria said.
He thanked people in Peoria for supporting him over the past five years, pointing out that his tenure is longer than what is normal for police chiefs, which is three years on average.
“It’s a tough job,” Echevarria said. “I’m hoping the black will come back in my hair. I haven’t met anyone whose hair turns black when they retire. I’m hoping I’m the first one naturally.”
Echevarria also thanked Dixon, who he felt worked alongside him in moving the city forward.
“We don’t always agree on certain things, but we knew what the mission was, to move this department forward, move the city forward and we did that,” Echevarria said. “We did that.”
Dixon, a Peoria native with 25 years of experience with the department, said he didn’t want to focus on changing the department but building on what his predecessor built over the course of five years.
“It’s not what we’re changing, it’s what we’re building,” Dixon said. “We have the best interests of the city in mind. We’re going to do everything we can to make those (crime) numbers go down. Somebody in the media asked me about the numbers and it’s point blank: we’ve had three homicides. We’re not done. Three people have died and one’s too many.”
Under Echevarria’s leadership, gun violence has declined along with homicides, something that Peoria Mayor Rita Ali spotlighted with pride as she spoke Friday about the work that had been done during his five-year tenure. She also noted that trust in policing had increased, particularly among young people who may not have been willing before to put their faith in law enforcement.
“We already identified through the Safety Network the problems associated with crime and gun violence, and part of that being the perception of the police, particularly in the Black community, the lack of trust,” Ali said. “I heard Dr. (Devon) Hawks (principal at Manual High School) say the young people are starting to trust the police and wanting their presence. It hasn’t always been like that.
“We haven’t always cooperated with a 211, calling things in to report a crime. But over the (past) five years, we’ve seen a change. We’ve seen more cooperation, more trust, relationship-building; not just the walk-and-talks, but the safety zones. He brought a lot of new, innovative things to Peoria.”
Others in Peoria took time Friday to reflect on how Echevarria’s leadership made the city better and safer. Tyson T. Parks, III, pastor at Forrest Hill United Methodist Church, said the city was in good hands in large part due to Echevarria connecting with youth.
“Do we have a long way to go?” Parks said. “Yes. But we must keep pushing forward. With this transition in the chief position, I had an opportunity to work with them, so I know we’re in good hands. That trust is there. These guys came to my birthday party. I can take that back to my congregation and say, ‘They move.’ The kids can see you having a relationship. The kids are there and they go, ‘That’s the chief!’ It’s a beautiful thing.”
Darnell Starks, a senior pastor with Mt. Hawley Community Church and a chaplain with the Peoria Fire Department, said Echevarria and city leaders had provided space for faith leaders to talk about how they could work together to make the city safer and better each month, praising the “spirit of collaboration” from each party.
“I see it from the mayor’s office, but also from the fire department and police department,” Starks said. “The chief invites the clergy to meet with him once a month. Not in every city does that take place, and there’s a real respect for communities of faith and how we can work together.”
While Echevarria acknowledged rumors of a possible move to Florida, he said he was looking forward to doing a lot of “nothing” for the time being.
“There’s no plans,” Echevarria said. “Unless somebody’s buying me a house in Florida – it’s not off the table – but I don’t know where I’m landing yet.”
This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Community leaders reflect on progress under Peoria police chief
Reporting by Zach Roth, Peoria Journal Star / Journal Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
