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'I like quiet days now': Q&A with Jeff Swoboda, Elgin's departing police chief

Police Chief Jeff Swoboda will be saying goodbye June 2 to Elgin, where he served for 26 years, eight of them at the helm of the police department. Swoboda, 48, is headed for Fort Collins, Colorado, where he starts as chief June 4.

Here is an edited version of a conversation he had with the Daily Herald.

Q: Compare your younger self with today - how have you changed as a police officer?

Swoboda: I like quiet days now. I enjoy coming in and just hearing that in the last eight hours nothing significant occurred. I find myself having a lot more empathy than I had. I think everybody in life is just trying to figure it out.

Q: You've led the effort to make community policing part of the department's culture. Can this model be replicated everywhere or does it have limitations?

Swoboda: I think it can. Some officers have more buy-in than others. ... Part of it is age and the number of years as a police officer. It's about the community working with police to identify problems and prioritize those problems, versus us coming in and identifying issues.

Q: What accomplishment are you most proud of?

Swoboda: The feeling of how connected this community is with their police department, and the police department, how connected we are to the community. I'm very proud that we are viewed on the same team, for the most part.

Q: What is your biggest regret?

Swoboda: I literally feel like I don't have any regrets. Early on as police chief, I tried to manage things too much, especially if there was bad news. I used to go on the radio show (on WRMN-AM 1410) and I had an answer book. Now, I'm much more comfortable being human.

Q: What do you wish you'd have known when you were appointed chief in 2010?

Swoboda: That I am not expected to know everything. Not being so concerned about knowing every call for service, every crime stat. I'm much more relaxed with just saying, "You know what, let me find out." I know how to quickly get answers for people. People cut you a lot more slack with that, if you're just honest. If we pass along bad information, that can be devastating.

Q: What's the most important thing when leading the police department?

Swoboda: You have to be competent. That's huge. If people don't think you are competent, they can like you, but they're not going to necessarily follow very far. You have to articulate your vision, especially for a department that's looking to change.

Q: Elgin had its first fatal police shooting in 19 years in March. Do you have any qualms about leaving while the state police investigation is pending?

Swoboda: The (job interview) started before the shooting. It's probably going to be a couple more months (for the investigation to wrap up) and at some point I really have to get to Fort Collins. I'm very proud with how the process has gone and how we've handled it.

Q: In the aftermath of the shooting, some members of the black community said their complaints have been ignored over the years. Are they right?

Swoboda: You don't have to look too far online to find departments where that happens. But we don't have that culture. And now, when someone comes in for a complaint, the supervisor has to activate the body camera. We will have video.

Q: The city council plans to look into creating a civilian board with oversight into police misconduct. What do you think of that?

Swoboda: Many places have it. Fort Collins has it. I'd be worried if we weren't handling it professionally or doing thorough investigations. To have a third party look at what we are doing is OK, so long as someone is not put on that board because they have an ax to grind.

Q: Who should succeed you?

Swoboda: (Deputy Chief) Bill Wolf. Anything that we have accomplished, he's been there. He's ready.

Q: What advice would you give your successor?

Swoboda: Set expectations really high, because the officers will need them. You need to hire the right people and get out of their way, and let the community be our boss and give us direction about where we need to go.

  "I find myself having a lot more empathy than I had. I think everybody in life is just trying to figure it out," says Elgin Police Chief Jeff Swoboda, whose last day on the job is June 2. A retirement ceremony is planned May 31. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
  Elgin Police Chief Jeff Swoboda's old business cards. Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
  "You have to be competent. That's huge," Elgin Police Chief Jeff Swoboda says. "If people don't think you are competent, they can like you, but they're not going to necessarily follow very far." Rick West/rwest@dailyherald.com
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