Huggins is an aggressive man, no doubt about it, but as I said in a previous post, he's a cop and he's got a cop mentality. There ain't nothing wrong with that most of the time, and so long as you understand that, you'll understand Huggins.
He's also a star on the rise within the police department and power often makes ya hungry for more. Sometimes those folks take risks that you or I ordinarily wouldn't when they're reaching for that big prize.
Just check out Bernie Kerik if you need any convincing.....Police seek to find common ground
A visitor to downtown Nashville in the 1980s would be amazed at their surroundings if they were to return today.
Gone are the seedy businesses whose neon signs would make families think twice before even approaching Lower Broadway or Second Avenue for a night out. Restaurants and retail shops have blended in with the live country music venues. The Titans and Predators draw thousands upon thousands of sports fans to the downtown area each time they play. More people than ever before are choosing to call downtown Nashville home and are purchasing condominiums in the Central Business District and on its fringes. Yes, downtown Nashville continues to be in the midst of a very positive transformation that began 20 years ago.
For the Police Department, downtown's growth and changes have brought about new and larger constituencies as well as special issues and challenges. At times we find ourselves mediating disputes brought about by a divergence of cultures and backgrounds. In addition to crime fighting and maintaining safety, the 102 officers who work out of the Central Precinct are also tasked with maintaining standards for quality of life and decency. I expect each officer under my command to be caring and compassionate, but at the same time resolved in their enforcement of laws and quality of life ordinances.
Downtown Nashville is very safe, and the officers at the Central Precinct are committed to keeping it that way. Overall major crime in the precinct is down about 2 percent this year when compared to last year.
Crime in downtown is more likely to occur well after midnight as the taverns and after-hours bars shut down. That is why the downtown mounted patrol, bicycle officers, and flex officers have just moved to 10-hour shifts to ensure a greater uniformed police presence downtown through 4 a.m., particularly at the end of the week and on weekends. Vehicle break-ins continue to be an issue for us, which is why the Police Department constantly reminds motorists to secure any valuables from sight when parking and locking their automobiles.
You would be amazed at what people leave in plain view for a potential thief to see (televisions, prescription medicine, money, video game systems, etc.)
A new visitor to Nashville in 2028 will, I believe, find a downtown area that continues to be on the move and confronting the challenges of continued growth. I hope that at the conclusion of my tenure at the Central Precinct, the stakeholders will join me in saying that the Police Department worked to be inclusive of all views, but at the end of the day, did what was best for all concerned.
On behalf of all my colleagues at the MNPD, thank you very much for your support.
Damian Huggins is commander of the downtown precinct of the Metro Nashville Police Department.
Gone are the seedy businesses whose neon signs would make families think twice before even approaching Lower Broadway or Second Avenue for a night out. Restaurants and retail shops have blended in with the live country music venues. The Titans and Predators draw thousands upon thousands of sports fans to the downtown area each time they play. More people than ever before are choosing to call downtown Nashville home and are purchasing condominiums in the Central Business District and on its fringes. Yes, downtown Nashville continues to be in the midst of a very positive transformation that began 20 years ago.
Working with stakeholders
In my five months as commander of the Central Precinct, which is the land area surrounded by the interstate loop, I have worked very hard to meet with stakeholders, including the homeless, businesses, and resident associations, all who have a variety of important perspectives about downtown. Disagreement and conflict are inevitable with such a diverse population, but the police department has and will continue to look for common ground. At the same time, we are not and cannot be in this alone. For example, it does no good for a person arrested more than 100 times for public drunkenness or other similar offenses to just keep going back to the lockup. Services by entities other than the Police Department must come into play.Downtown Nashville is very safe, and the officers at the Central Precinct are committed to keeping it that way. Overall major crime in the precinct is down about 2 percent this year when compared to last year.
Crime in downtown is more likely to occur well after midnight as the taverns and after-hours bars shut down. That is why the downtown mounted patrol, bicycle officers, and flex officers have just moved to 10-hour shifts to ensure a greater uniformed police presence downtown through 4 a.m., particularly at the end of the week and on weekends. Vehicle break-ins continue to be an issue for us, which is why the Police Department constantly reminds motorists to secure any valuables from sight when parking and locking their automobiles.
You would be amazed at what people leave in plain view for a potential thief to see (televisions, prescription medicine, money, video game systems, etc.)
A new visitor to Nashville in 2028 will, I believe, find a downtown area that continues to be on the move and confronting the challenges of continued growth. I hope that at the conclusion of my tenure at the Central Precinct, the stakeholders will join me in saying that the Police Department worked to be inclusive of all views, but at the end of the day, did what was best for all concerned.
On behalf of all my colleagues at the MNPD, thank you very much for your support.
Damian Huggins is commander of the downtown precinct of the Metro Nashville Police Department.
Police action must have its limits
Today's Topic: Cops proactive downtown
Our View
Metro Downtown Precinct Cmdr. Damian Huggins has a vision for downtown, good intentions and an obvious determination to see his vision through.Huggins has downtown's image at heart, and all of his goals seem laudable. But some of the tactics used, like clearing out a place where homeless people stay or keeping young people moving through the downtown bus terminal as though they were riff-raff appear to push the envelope a little too far.
It wasn't just that he wanted the Metro Transit Authority to make high school students take the first bus home instead of hanging out at the new Music City Central bus station, after an increase in street robberies emerged near the depot. MTA has tried to be accommodating to the commander's call, but the agency has understandably felt uncomfortable about forcing students to get on a bus.
It wasn't just that he supported a Metro noise ordinance that has drawn considerable criticism from the city's tourism leadership. It wasn't just that Huggins wanted Tent City, in an area off Hermitage Avenue, closed.
It is all of the above that should give the city pause about police strategies in a busy downtown setting, an area that continues to change. No one can question the desire to make downtown spiffy and trouble- free. But rooting out homeless people from the only home they have, shuffling off people from the bus terminal and supporting efforts that would literally lower the volume of the music in Music City amount to a rather broad-reaching policy. Metro police may be learning that other strategies can better accomplish the same goals.
The city has an anti-poverty program under way that can help find answers to homelessness. It has to be fair in how it regulates music, making sure restrictions are equally applied. There are all kinds of social services and business groups that have ideas about issues downtown. The police department cannot be the answer to all issues.
The single most important priority for the police department is public safety. That's why Huggins' interest in urging tough prosecutions among the city's most habitual offenders makes sense. But when the desire to improve the area treats a group of people, like those at the bus terminal, as if they're up to no good it doesn't send the right message. The police department needs to do what's necessary to protect people. The police department cannot be a universal social service organization.
Downtown presents many complex challenges. The district is becoming a residential area as well as an entertainment area at night. Nashvillians may wish there weren't homeless people downtown, and they may wish some pockets of music weren't too loud, and they may wish the new bus depot were free of any potential disruption. But people also understand why arbitrary decisions are not the answer. Who wouldn't want a squeaky clean downtown? But the remedies for downtown require several approaches by several entities. The police cannot — and should not — do it all.
