The impact of crime in Jackson hit close to home as Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba made his pick for police chief official Thursday.

The mayor named Assistant Chief James Davis as the Jackson Police Department's new interim police chief. Davis will replace Anthony Moore as the city's second interim police chief until a permanent chief is selected.

Davis was deputy chief of JPD's patrol operations division before being promoted to assistant chief. He has presided over day-to-day operations in Moore's absence.

Lumumba named Moore as interim chief on Jan. 2 and had until July 2 to make his selection, according to state statute. The mayor now has another 90 days to pick another interim or name a permanent chief. A permanent chief selection will be required to undergo confirmation from the City Council.

The mayor has held out on naming his pick for a permanent police chief longer than any other official in his administration. He said Thursday that with the selection of Davis as a second interim selection, he was being deliberative and continues to undergo a nationwide search for a permanent chief.

"This is too important of a decision. As a mayor, it's up there with the most critical of all decisions, that's why we have been deliberative. I’m not trying to go with the quick decision as opposed to the right decision," Lumumba said.

Davis said he intended to focus on community policing as he transitions to the department's top cop.

"I want to build the community. I want to get the city's apartment complexes, it's churches and businesses taking a role in addressing crime issues. I want to talk to the kid on the corner. I want to talk to Mrs. Jackson," Davis said.

He also requested help from the department he'll now oversee.

"I'm a public servant. That's why I'm here. Moving forward, I'm looking for a re-commitment from all officers, not just myself," he said.

Davis, like the other chiefs before him, will have his hands full at JPD with staffing, pay and resource concerns.

JPD, the state's largest police department, has yet to catch up with many departments across the state and acquire body cameras for its officers and in many cases, patrol car dashcams are not in operation.

The department still faces a staff shortage, although Davis said he was optimistic about an upcoming recruitment class.

Moore was not at Thursday's news conference to answer questions. Lumumba praised his service to the city and said Moore helped the department with its training efforts, saying he "was a great officer to learn from."

The mayor said he has talked to former Dallas Police Department Chief David O. Brown on cultivating community engagement with the department, one of the top qualities he is looking for in a permanent chief. Brown is perhaps best known for leading his department in the aftermath of the slaying of five Dallas police officers by a disgruntled war veteran on July 7.

Thursday morning, a dead body was found on the sidewalk just yards from City Hall, where the mayor's announcement was made.

The initial investigation shows the man may have been assaulted at some point prior to his death, JPD spokesman Sgt. Roderick Holmes said.

Hinds County Coroner Sharon Grisham-Stewart confirmed the victim did have trauma to the head. At this point, she said, he is still unidentified and fingerprints will be collected during the autopsy.

https://www.clarionledger.com/story/news/local/2018/06/28/jackson-mayor-names-citys-top-cop-following-nearby-discovery-dead-body/741626002/