Dearborn Police Chief Orders Overtime for Officers

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Dearborn Police Chief Ronald Haddad said at a news conference Tuesday that he’s approved overtime for more than half of the city’s 194 police officers to continue the city’s downward trend for crime.

Year-to-date cCrime is down 3.43 percent, Haddad said, The Detroit News reports. So far this year, there have been 4,744 crimes in Dearborn, compared with 4,944 for all of last year.

One-hundred police officers will work an extra four hours every two weeks as part of the city’s crime-fighting efforts.

“We’re going to put all of our resources in one basket,” Haddad said at the news conference, held at the Dearborn Police Department headquarters on Michigan Avenue.

Among the crimes he highlighted was an Aug. 27 home invasion in which a woman living in the 7900 block of Appoline told police she awoke about 3 a.m. to find a man on top of her in bed. She screamed, and the man attempted to cover her mouth and strangle her before fleeing on foot.

Terrance Eugene Simmons, 22, of Detroit, was arrested the following day police said. He has been charged with home invasion and assault by strangulation. His probable cause conference in 19th District Court is Thursday, Sept. 11, and his preliminary examination is Sept. 18.

Other measures taken to increase public safety include the addition of more security officers assigned to Dearborn schools, and the implementation of a Nextdoor anti-crime program, a social networking initiative used by more than 74,000 neighborhoods across the country to communicate about what’s going on in their communities.

The police department is also looking at outfitting its officers with body cameras, which Haddad can be useful technology.

At the news conference, Haddad displayed several high-powered weapons that were among the some 300 guns confiscated annually by the department.

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Patch file photo of Police Chief Ronald Haddad