Oakland police chief grateful to take on challenge, gives emotional thank you to his mom

OAKLAND, Calif. - Deputy Police Chief LeRonne Armstrong, a 22-year veteran of the department and an Oakland native, formally accepted his new post as the city's top cop on Monday at his alma mater, McClymonds High School, while saying he was grateful to step in during these challenging times and getting choked up while thanking his mother for where he is today. 

Armstrong is now the first police chief selected by the voter-approved Oakland Police Commission and he also becomes the 11th chief since 2003. 

Police Commission Chair Regina Jackson called Armstrong an "Oakland native son," and said she believes he can bring the city to a "place of community, responsible policing and the opportunity to transform a department." 

She called him a straight shooter, the type of leader who can bring more transparency to OPD. 

Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf said that Armstrong is the best leader for Oakland at this time. 

"Town business," were the first words out of Armstrong's lips, as he got emotional thanking others for his new job. "I'm honored that you selected me to lead this department, especially during these challenging times."

Oakland's homicide rate is climbing dangerously as the pandemic takes its toll on residents, including the near standstill of the department's renowned Ceasefire program since its leaders can't go door to door and speak with at-risk community members during stay-at-home orders. 

"I hear the voices of the families," Armstrong said of the 15 people killed so far this year, including his godsister. 

The department is also dealing with an Instagram scandal linked to current officers liking racist and sexist social media posts, which he also mentioned in his acceptance speech. 

"OPD will treat members of the community with dignity and respect," Armstrong said, adding that anyone associated with white supremacy "will not be welcome." 

Armstrong takes over from Interim Susan Manheimer, who was called in last February when the Police Commission fired Anne Kirkpatrick. 

He beat out three other finalists, including his wife, Drennon Lindsey, for the job. She had been the interim deputy chief. She will now become a deputy chief and head up the Bureau of Investigations. He thanked his wife and his son and daughters, who flew in just to be with him. 

He got especially choked up when he thanked his mother and who sat proudly in front of the crowd outside at the high school. 

"There is one lady.....," he said, taking a very long pause as he collected his words. "One lady that brings me to this moment."

He described her as a single mother with three children, two jobs, and who still found time to walk her kids to school each day with no car.

She told him when he was young boy: "There there is something special about you."

And she always told him to remember these three things: Maintain his faith in God, be respectful, and believe that you can be anything you want to be.

"I'm so grateful to you mom," Armstrong said. "And today I share this moment with you. 

LeRonne Armstrong thanks his mother as he is sworn in as Oakland Police Chief. Feb. 8, 2021

The other two outside candidates were Jason Lando, a commander of the Pittsburgh Police Department in Pennsylvania, and Abdul Pridgen, chief of the Seaside Police Department in Monterey County.

Armstrong has been with the Oakland Police Department since 1999. And he has had a personal view of the scandals that have contributed to a rapid chief turnover, including times when the city hired three police chiefs in one week, both in 2013 and 2016.

Armstrong was raised in West Oakland, where he graduated McClymonds High School and has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s degree in organizational leadership. 

In a Twitter video that was released Friday, Armstrong and Schaaf touched briefly on the death of his older brother, who was killed at Oakland Technical High School in 1985 when he was 16 years old. 

When asked by Schaaf what he thought his brother’s reaction to his job would be, Armstrong said, "I think he’d say how proud of me he was, of his younger brother having a dream and making good on that dream. It’s a special moment."

Armstong concluded his speech by quoting former President Barack Obama: "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek."