Police chief selection is praised
Keenan, mayor's in-law, seen as bridge to union
Community leaders, police officers, and others were quick to praise the selection of Captain Paul N. Keenan as the next chief of the Quincy Police Department.
The 25-year veteran of the force was chosen by an outside, five-person selection committee chaired by Michael G. Bellotti, sheriff of Norfolk County.
Keenan is Mayor Thomas P. Koch's brother-in-law. The conflict of interest caused Koch to ask Bellotti several months ago to undertake the selection process. Koch said he would appoint whomever was picked and had no role in the process.
The committee, in a 10-page report, praised Keenan's broad range of experience, said he had the skills needed to mend the department's fractured relationship with the Patrolmen's Union, and applauded his plan for community policing.
Keenan will succeed Chief Robert F. Crowley, who is retiring at the end of the month.
"I'm very excited about moving forward," said Keenan, who turns 50 this week. He takes over a department with 203 officers and 48 civilians that has struggled with morale because of a tense dispute between Crowley and the patrolman's union, led by Officer Bruce Tait.
Keenan, a member of the executive board of the superior officers union for 17 years, said he hopes to meet soon with members of the different unions to hear their concerns and to lay out his own vision.
He also hopes to make community policing a cornerstone of his administration, saying he would work to get patrol officers more actively involved with residents so they understand their concerns.
The officers "respond well to calls, but a lot of the day-to-day stuff, the quality of life issues, fall through the cracks. But they are very important to the community," Keenan said. The department has a good handle on major crimes, but smaller problems may not be as big a priority "and we need to enhance that effort."
During his career, Keenan has been in charge of patrol operations, traffic, special events, and the detective bureau.
A 1976 graduate of North Quincy High School, Keenan received a bachelor's degree from Southern New Hampshire University and a master's from Curry College in Milton. He also attended Quincy College. He and his wife, Karen, have four children.
His brother, John, is a city councilor, and the mayor's wife, Christine, is his sister.
Keenan should be neither rewarded nor punished because he is related to the mayor, Koch said. "There's probably not much I can say to convince those cynics it wasn't a done deal."
Koch said the process used to select a new chief had been well thought out and thorough. "He is one of those go-to guys who gets the job done," said Koch. "I think his style of leadership will be well-received."
Keenan and Captain Michael J. Miller, who were the two candidates for the job, were well-qualified, according to the selection committee's report, but "Keenan has a slightly, though noticeable, broader range of operational experience, which the committee considered critical to the task of leading the department at this time."
Matt Carroll can be reached at mcarroll@globe.com.
