Bobby Calvert officially became the new Chief of Police in Moberly this month. Former chief Troy Link retired in spring and Calvert had been serving in the position as interim Chief.
KBIA’s Jana Rose Schleis sat down with Calvert in Moberly to discuss his law enforcement plans for the mid-Missouri community.
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Schleis: What are your priorities as you officially take on the role of Moberly Chief of Police?
Calvert: So I think the priorities are going to be recruitment and retention. That's something that I think we need to focus on first, as I take the office.
Schleis: How will you work to improve that law enforcement recruitment and retention in the Moberly police department?
Calvert: Currently on recruitment, the Moberly City Council a couple years ago had passed an ordinance where we could hire and send officers to the Police Academy, which means they would pay for them to go to the academy and pay them a salary while they were going, which is great for recruitment.
We're also working on our social media. We're working with the community relations manager with the city of Moberly on that as well, just trying to let everybody know that we're a great police department and we have openings.
On retainment, we're trying to just move forward as we had, offer training to our officers, specialty training. We have a couple specialty areas that we've had in the past that we would like to eventually, as we can get staff back, bring those back into existence.
Schleis: Could you explain, first, what community policing is, and how that's going to factor as a priority for you going forward?
Calvert: Well community policing, to me, is just officers being involved, the police department in general being involved in the community. We did have a specific community police officer position prior to getting short staffed, we've had to temporarily put that on hold, bring that individual back to patrol. But we would like to get that position eventually, when we can get our numbers up, get them back out into the community. But overall, community policing is just the community and the police department have a working relationship.
Schleis: What are Moberly’s challenges as it relates to crime?
Calvert: Moberly’s like a lot of communities, but most of all, we have what we call petty crime. We have our thefts, our vandalism, we have our low level assaults, and you know, occasionally, we may as well have a homicide. But we have our crimes as other communities do. But in general, Moberly is fairly low in their crime.
Schleis: What’s your strategy as police chief to address that type of crime?
Calvert: Currently we ask our patrol staff as much as they can, beyond the reactive calls, to get out and be proactive. I believe being out in the community and being seen does help eliminate some of that — just getting out and sometimes just building relationships with the community can as well help combat that. Maybe they'll pass on some information that was needed to be able to solve a crime.
Schleis: Law enforcement technology and equipment is evolving all the time. Are there any tools or equipment that you'd like to deploy or purchase as you take over as Chief?
Calvert: We actually have up to date body cameras, up to date computer car cameras, equipment in our cars, mobile computers, but there's a couple areas we'd like to look at. We'd like to look at maybe a drone program.
Schleis: How could you deploy a drone at the Moberly Police Department?
Calvert: Well, the drone could be used in a couple capacities. It could be used for search and rescue operations, for missing children, elderly. You can also use smaller drones in a capacity from a tactical advantage.
Schleis: You've been a part of the Moberly community for a long time, but for folks who haven't met you in this role or the ones you held previously, what would you like the community to know about you?
Calvert: I've lived near Moberly most of my life. I grew up in Keytesville, which is in Chariton County. Graduated school there, and shortly after, I went to work for the Missouri Department of Corrections.
I attended the police academy at Mobile Area Community College Law Enforcement Training Center.
I've got a personal investment in the community, my wife, my daughter and my grandchild live here. I'm involved in the community and just want everybody to know that I'm going to do the best job I can.
