"Time to say goodbye:" Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn announces retirement after 10 years

MILWAUKEE -- Ed Flynn is retiring as chief of the Milwaukee Police Department. The decision was announced at a news conference on Monday afternoon, January 8th -- 10 years and one day after Flynn was sworn in as chief. In announcing his retirement, Flynn said "It has been a privilege to serve this great city. It has been the pinnacle of my professional life."

Flynn's retirement takes effect on February 16th. Officials with the Fire and Police Commission said they'll discuss their plan moving forward at a meeting Thursday. From there, they'll choose an acting chief from within the department.

Flynn was appointed to the position in January 2008. He had served as police commissioner in Springfield, Massachusetts. At the time of his swearing in, Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett referred to Flynn as a "cop's cop" with a strong record of getting results.

"I think what the people of this city want at this time, they want the best person to head this department. I believe the best person at this time is Ed Flynn to head this department," Barrett said during the swearing-in ceremony.

The Fire and Police Commission unanimously voted him in, making him the city's 20th chief.

Flynn came into office on the heels of three former officers being federally sentenced for the beating of Frank Jude Jr.

"Police officers have a responsibility to see to it that their colleagues refrain from misconduct. We know that goes against some traditional grains but misconduct damages us all," Flynn said during his swearing-in ceremony.

Those words would come back to haunt him in 2009, when his publicly-exposed extramarital affair prompted a published statement accepting the consequences of his behavior.

"On the private side of my life I'm working hard to restore my credibility with my family which is the most important credibility for me right now. Publicly my responsibility is to focus on the challenges that confront this city in terms of crime, fear and disorder," Flynn said.

Flynn emphasized a neighborhood policing plan -- creating a task force of more than 100 officers pulled from various units -- making sure there were enough people on the streets to deter the crime they were tracking.

"And what we're doing is grouping those units together under central direction, working closely with district commanders to have a strategic and tactical impact," Flynn said.

During the first 6 months of 2009, the crime numbers showed some progress, with 3,200 fewer crime victims and fewer crimes committed compared to 2008 -- but homicides and rapes were up.

He's had his critics and supporters. He came under fire in 2011 after the release of video showing the death of Derek Williams after he struggled to breathe in a squad car. There were four officers charged with criminal misconduct related to illegal strip searches, the death of Dontre Hamilton by former MPD Officer Christopher Manney which led to protest and Flynn's firing of Manney for not adhering to police -- and former MPD Officer Dominique Heaggan-Brown's shooting of Sylville Smith led to civil unrest in the Sherman Park neighborhood -- tainting police/community relations. Heaggan-Brown was later charged in an unrelated sexual assault case.

"Every major police jurisdiction has critical incidents. Things go wrong, and the test of the organization is what we put in place to prevent recurrence and what we do with the incidents that, in fact, occur," Flynn said.

"10 years. A lot has happened. Much has been accomplished. Much has been achieved," Flynn said Monday as he announced his retirement. "It's time -- time to say thank you, time to say goodbye."

In doing that, Chief Flynn boiled his tenure down to hard numbers Monday.

"Total crime declined by 4 percent. Significantly, homicide declined by 16 percent. In 2017, robbery declined 11 percent and was the lowest in 11 years. Carjackings declined 12 percent while auto thefts were down 12 percent," Flynn said.

He said he wants to spend more time with his family and grandchildren, and reflected on when the Milwaukee Common Council recently tried to have him fired.

"I could have saved them so much heartache if they only knew all their troubles would soon be over. I don't know what they will talk about now!" Flynn said.

Chief Flynn served 47 years in law enforcement, and was the fifth longest serving chief in MPD's 162-year history.

"I have mixed emotions. I have pride in this organization," Flynn said.

CLICK HERE to view of retrospective of Chief Flynn's tenure

The Fire and Police Commission issued this response to Flynn's announcement:

According to the Milwaukee Police Department's website, Flynn commanded an agency of 2,000 sworn officers and 700 civilians. He was police commissioner in Springfield, Massachusetts from 2006 to 2008.

The site also says Flynn is a member of the Police Executive Research Forum. He serves on the Executive Committee of the International Association of Chiefs of Police and Fight Crime Invest in Kids Executive Board. He is a member of the Harvard Kennedy School’s Executive Session on Policing. He is a past recipient of the prestigious Gary Hayes Memorial Award for Police Leadership from the Police Executive Research Forum.

Below is further reaction to Flynn's announcement:

Milwaukee Police Association:

Joint statement from Milwaukee Common Council:

Acting Milwaukee County Sheriff Richard Schmidt:

Alderman Tony Zielinski:

State Senator Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee:

Community Coalition for Quality Policing: