Clinton hires Ford Hayman as police chief
New Clinton Police Chief Ford Hayman said he's glad to be able to bring home a skill set he's been developing his entire career.
The Clinton resident has been with the Byram Police Department since 2010 and worked for the Mississippi Department of Corrections and the Jackson Police Department before that.
"It means everything to me that I went to JPD and MDOC and Byram and I picked up a pretty good skill set," he said. "Now I get to go to my hometown and use my skills and experience to safeguard my own community."
Hayman was appointed by Mayor Phil Fisher and was unanimously approved by the Clinton Board of Aldermen on Tuesday night.
When he was with JPD, Hayman worked directly for Chief Lee Vance. He plans to bring the relationships he's forged in the past to the office in Clinton.
"I feel like it will give me a leg up in the process, and I know that many of the people there, and I feel like we still have a good working professional relationship," he said. "I hope we can get together and work together to sort out and bridge any differences."
Hayman identified three core competencies he will utilize in positioning the department for success when he begins work May 1: community partnerships, proactive criminal enforcement and efficiency in service delivery. Working for a department like Byram has given him an important perspective on community relationships, Hayman said.
"They are key. We can’t effectively provide the city of Clinton with a good professional law enforcement service unless we are connected to the community," he said. "We will implement some things in the next few months to strengthen those partnerships. The city of Clinton has been under good leadership for many years, and they’re tough on crime, I want to reconvey to the criminal element that Clinton is not the place to come, much like we’ve been doing in Byram. We will have a relentless, zero-tolerance policy on crime in the city of Clinton."
“Ford Hayman’s combination of professional experience and deep community ties make him an ideal leader for today’s Clinton Police Department,” Fisher said. “I am confident that he will quickly earn the respect of officers and residents and will serve ably as chief of police. He will carry forward the growth and progress our police department has made over the past three years that has seen the department grow from 36 paid officer slots to 56 paid officer positions.”
Hayman was raised in Clinton, and he and wife Sandi are the parents of two boys. Hayman graduated from Clinton High School and received a degree in sociology with a minor in criminal justice from Mississippi College in December.
Hayman plans to begin engaging the community immediately through a series of listening tours with neighborhood associations, civic groups and community leaders that will help develop strategic partnerships, and eventually to build a citizens' academy.
Hayman said he will also develop a proactive plan that will target property crimes and increase police visibility throughout the city.
Contact Therese Apel at tapel@gannett.com. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter.
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