During an interview with 60 Minutes’ Bill Whitaker, the chief of the embattled Cleveland Division of Police, Calvin Williams, admits there are some bad guys in the department. He said, “It’s my job to weed out the bad people and to nurture and support and grow the good officers who are out there.” He’s been a cop in the city for 29 years; he assumed command in February.
Chief Williams is working with the Department of Justice as it investigates the killing of Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old black boy who was shot and killed by a white police officer. Rice was playing with a pellet gun in a park with his sister who was tackled when she rushed to her fallen brother. There are reports that the officer who shot Rice, Officer Timothy Loehmann, was deemed “emotionally unfit by another police department.” When asked about the diversity of the department, Williams said it’s always at the forefront of what he does, “But if you come from the premise that only an African American can police other African Americans, then we’re all doomed to failure,” said Williams, who is black.
