CRISP COUNTY, Ga. -- September 27th marked the first official day for Cordele Police Chief Mike Hathaway.
FOX 31 spoke with Chief Hathaway on his first day of work and he says right now, he is just trying to build good relationships with everyone.
“I have met with all of the officers that work here currently and had the opportunity to listen to them to see what they think we can change," he says. "Some of the things we will continue doing the same that they have already set up, so that is kind of the first-day outlook.”
Building relationships, not only with his team, but with the community as well are some of his biggest goals.
Hathaway discussed different plans he has on getting more connected to the community, such as meeting with community leaders and having town hall meetings to listen to community concerns.
Hathaway has worked in law enforcement for over 20 years. He started as a Major in the Marietta Police department in 1985 and worked there until his retirement in 2016.
With his experience, Hathaway brings many new initiatives. He plans on assigning police officers to different neighborhoods in the community for the police to get more acclimated with citizens.
The officers will spend a lot of time just getting out of cars and walking through some of the neighborhoods. We want to target apartment complexes where you see higher crimes like theft and burglary. We will have officers assigned to different neighborhoods to get to know citizens of Cordele one on one.
Other initiatives that are in the discussion include partnering with the Crisp County Sheriff's Office to form a gang task force to help lower crime.
However, before these changes, he says they need more boots on the ground. Currently, the Cordele Police Department is heavily recruiting due to the shortage of officers. Hathaway says they are trying to get officers in the door. The department hopes to be fully staffed by next summer.
In the meantime, Hathaway says change is coming.
“We have to fight crime that is our responsibility, but we also have the responsibility of upholding the quality of life," he says.
Chief Hathaway came out of retirement to take this position and he says it was the best decision.