Kreins hired as new interim deputy chief
The Vallejo Police Department added an interim deputy chief of police in what it hopes will enhance the embattled department’s efforts at reform.
Joseph K reins, former Vallejo Chief of Police, will come back to the department to work alongside permanent Deputy Chief Michael Kihmm, who was hired on Nov. 30. Kreins is replacing former Interim Chief of Police Joseph Allio, who resigned on Oct. 1 to care for his ailing daughter .
Kreins had a relatively short stint as chief of police in Vallejo, joining the department as an interim chief in July of 2012, becoming permanent, and then leaving roughly a year and a half later. Since then he has served as interim chief in Benicia, Winters, Novato, Clayton, and Suisun City.
His long resume also includes being a police officer in Concord and Sausalito, where he was promoted to chief in 2001. Two years later he also took on the role of city manager there.
According to VPD spokesperson Brittany Jackson, Interim Deputy Chief Kreins holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Human Relations Management from Golden Gate University (magna cum laude).
He also holds all supervisory and management certificates from the California Police Officer Standards Training (POST), including a certificate in executive management. He has completed the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Law Enforcement Executive Development ( LEEDS) program and the Senior Management Institute for Policing (SMIP) sponsored by the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) in Boston, MA.
Chief Shawny Williams has told the Vallejo City Council that the department needs more officers to implement the improvements he would like to see. For example, there are only six investigators on staff, with a caseload of 5,500, he said.
In mid-November, the chief said that homicides in Vallejo had increased 130 percent over 2019. In addition, he said that sexual assaults were up 7 percent, aggravated assaults are up 20 percent, and shootings were up 21 percent over the previous year. The homicide count for the city is up to 29, including the officerinvolved shooting of Sean Monterrosa.
The police department’s biggest problem is its reputation, which has taken major hits both locally and nationwide, after a series of questionable shootings and a scathing article in The New Yorker, painting the department as out of control. Distrust in the community swelled after a series of shootings, including the shooting death of Monterrosa in June, the 2018 shooting death of Ronnell Foster, and the 2019 shooting death of Willie McCoy.
In June of this year, the California Department of Justice began working with the VPD to “review and reform” the department in order to increase public trust, according to Attorney General Xavier Becerra.
A request for Kreins’ salary from police spokesperson Brittany Jackson was not returned by press time, but former Interim Chief Allio’s salary was believed to be a pro-rated $181,000 a year. A “permanent” deputy police chief was approved for $222,000 a year, roughly $455,000 including benefits.
Members of the community have expressed anger during council meetings at the idea of the police department spending more money, especially after the new $13 million headquarters building got the green light.
Last month, Chief Williams and Cit y Manager Greg Nyhoff outlined changes to the department that would add up to $1.121 million per year, including the hiring of the two deputy chiefs. Nyhoff anticipates that the money will come partly from the police slush fund, property tax revenues, and budget cutting, but with Measure G being defeated on the ballot and ongoing lawsuits with $50 million in liability on the line, he says it is essential that the city make this “investment” to further improve the culture and practices of the police department and decrease future liabilities.
C ouncilmember a nd Mayor- elect Robert McConnell told the Times-Herald that the extra help at the top is needed.
“It has become apparent that the task of reformation of the VPD is more than a single person can accomplish,” he said. “Until meaningful change is permanently sustained there will continue to be the need for a Deputy Chief, or Chiefs.”
Interim Deputy Chief Kreins will be sworn in on Dec. 7.