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From Police Chief to Newscaster: David Brown Gets a Retirement Gig

Retired Dallas Police Chief David Brown has a new job.

By Tasha Tsiaperas

Retired Dallas Police Chief David Brown has a new job.

He will be joining ABC News as a contributor Jan. 1, according to a network memo sent out to WFAA-TV staff. WFAA reporter Jason Whitely tweeted the news Wednesday morning.

"As our country begins a new presidential era, we're very fortunate to have Chief Brown's unique perspective to inform our reporting on many of the nation's fault lines -- economic inequality, gun violence, race relations and social justice," ABC News President James Goldston said in the note.

Brown has been tight-lipped about his plans since he retired in October, though he has already committed to several public speeches, including at Southern Methodist University and the University of Texas at Austin.

At his retirement ceremony he said: "I'm going to love people in retirement. That's the potion that's gonna heal us in this country."

Brown was on the Dallas police force for 33 years, including six years as chief of police. He received national praise for his handling of the aftermath of the July 7 shooting downtown, when a lone gunman ambushed police officers, killing five and injuring nine others.

The chief was frank in his public appearances immediately after the ambush, saying police officers are often asked to do too much to fix societal ills.

He also encouraged protesters to join the police force so they could patrol their own neighborhoods.

During Brown's tenure, he emphasized community policing, such as putting officers on foot patrols in neighborhoods and assigning cops to play sports with kids. He also publicly released all use-of-force data, required all of his staff to undergo racial bias training and changed a foot-chase policy in an effort to prevent police shootings.

He has been an outspoken supporter of police officers, saying cops should be paid more to put their lives on the line. And he took a kinder approach to policing protests, encouraging officers to mingle with the crowd and forgoing heavy tactical gear.

Brown is a native Dallasite and graduated from South Oak Cliff High School in 1979. He attended the University of Texas at Austin before joining the Dallas Police Department.

During his tenure, he experienced profound losses. His partner was killed in the line of duty, and his brother was later killed by drug dealers in Phoenix.

And shortly after becoming chief of police, his son shot and killed a Lancaster cop and then was killed by police officers. His autopsy showed he had drugs and alcohol in his system.

In several retirement speeches, Brown said he believes he has a story to tell, one he now will be sharing regularly during news programming.

(c)2016 The Dallas Morning News

Caroline Cournoyer is GOVERNING's senior web editor.
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