Dallas's Interim Top Cop Says Trust Is A Big Concern

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DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – The rise of violent crime in Dallas continues to be the top policing concern for a department that has a new officer leading it. David Pughes is now the interim chief for Dallas Police Department.

The 26-year police veteran said he loves being a cop, but he doesn't want to be the top cop. Pughes held every type of police role you can think of, a street patrol officer, a homicide detective, head of a division overseeing 300 officers.

He's also a father of two teenagers, and that's why he won't apply for the chief position. They are his top priority, he says.

As the man in command for now, however, he laid out a priority list Dallas police must address for the betterment of public safety for the city. "A couple of things I see as a priority that I will focus on now is fugitive apprehension.  I want to look at that, and see how we can develop some programs, so we can put personnel in place, so we can really ramp that up," says Pughes

In a candid conversation regarding his temporary role to lead the Dallas police department, David Pughes put the responsibility on the conduct and actions of DPD officers.

"If the people out there we're serving don't trust us, and are afraid to call 911 because they don't know who's going to show up, or how they'll be treated, or what's going to happen, if we get to that point, then we've completely lost it, and all our other efforts are for naught," comments Pughes.

After a horrific, deadly summer for the Dallas Police Department, a year of officer resignations, and complaints of low morale - challenging is the word Pughes uses to describe the job before him as interim chief.

"Trust. That's the part that concerns me more than anything," says Pughes.

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