New DMPD Chief talks about changes he wants to implement

DES MOINES, Iowa — This is the third week on the job for Chief Michael McTaggart , and he is starting to settle in.

"I'm getting a little bit better at juggling all the stuff," said Des Moines Police Chief McTaggart. "Even though I've worked here for 25 plus years, there's just even more stuff to get to know and more people to get to meet and trying to balance that with ongoing police operations."

McTaggart said when he first joined the force in 1999, becoming a police officer was the only goal. He had different jobs during the summers while at the University of Northern Iowa that allowed him to move around outdoors and help people. That is when he thought becoming an officer of the law would be a good fit.

It wasn't until six months ago that then Major McTaggart thought about becoming the city's top cop after Chief Dana Wingert announced his retirement .

"I had reached a point in my career, I like challenges, I like new things and I knew this job is very challenging and you always have to be striving to do better," said McTaggart. "So I wanted to make sure I was in the right place, my family is in the right place, so I decided to put in for the opportunity and was lucky enough to be selected."

The role comes with changes in responsibility, and Chief McTaggart wants to be responsible for the department having two changes early into his new role.

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"We are almost set up to put out easy to read data that has charts that are simple to read on the majority of questions that we get from neighborhood meetings. And that will be simple to get from either our website or our app or the city's website," said McTaggart.

He views the sharing of data as a way for the department to be transparent in where they are patrolling and why it makes sense. But what are numbers or charts without having a face to a name?

"I think we are going to purse a little bit more of, not just the chief or major or a high up position attending neighborhood events," said McTaggart. "We really have to get all of our personnel down to, you know, just out of the academy to attend to make contact with the neighborhoods, because I think it's important that we don't just go into stuff looking to police the community. We got to be a part of the community as a whole and make relationships."

Chief McTaggart plans in around a year from now to redistrict where police officers patrol in Des Moines, pointing to some growing communities that will need more police response in the future. Being able to point to statistics and having new officers get introduced in different parts of the community will be beneficial in the redistricting efforts the department will see. That comes with promotions and new appointments which is something else he hinted at.

The McTaggart family is handling the adjustment well. McTaggart said he is able to go home and not be viewed as the role he just assumed.

"They don't look at me as the chief of police at home so I don't get the level of respect at home that I would here," said McTaggart, jokingly.

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