Asheville Interim Chief Lamb talks new APD focus, 'surprise' retirement, staffing issues
ASHEVILLE – As Asheville’s new interim chief of police, Michael Lamb said he wants the police department to look different than it did under former Chief David Zack in one key way: community engagement.
Lamb would like himself and his executive team to be “out there engaging with the community and with officers,” as well as other city departments and other stakeholders, he told the Citizen Times Dec. 19.
“Sometimes it’s hard for me to sit in the office, so I’d like being out in communities,” Lamb said. “If folks want to have a meeting outside the agency within their community, I’d love to be able to go to those and speak to folks, so they see the executive team and the leadership out more, engaging with stakeholders and community.”
Lamb said he also intends to continue the focus on improving officer training, compensation, and staffing levels, as well as working collaboratively with the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office.
“My goal during this time is for it to be a seamless transition, to keep a continuity of leadership so that our officers feel supported,” Lamb said. “Having that seamless transition is important not only for the community, but also for officers internally so that they know what expectations are.”
Zack's 'surprise' retirement
When newly appointed Interim Chief Lamb was first hired as a patrol officer with APD in 1998, the hiring manager at the time asked him, “What do you want to achieve as an officer of the Asheville Police Department?” Lamb recalled.
The 22-year-old said, “Well, I guess one day, I would like to be chief of police,” Lamb told the Citizen Times Dec. 19.
Now, nearly 26 years later, City Manager Deborah Campbell named Lamb to be the head of Asheville's law enforcement on Dec. 18, three days after former Chief David Zack submitted his letter of resignation to stop working that same day. Zack had served as chief for less than four years and resigned a little over a month after his wife was arrested and charged with DWI.
A speedy sequence of events unfolded before Zack’s resignation, after a leaked conversation with police staffers Dec. 12 ― where he told them he was thinking about retiring early next year ― turned into a more definitive announcement from the city later that day.
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This all happened last week while Lamb was on his annual leave, though he said he spent “a lot of time on the phone.”
“It was a surprise. We were looking probably more at another year or two that Chief Zack would stay,” Lamb said. “We knew it was going to come at some point, because his goal that he stated several times, was that he wanted the next chief to come from within.”
Lamb said Zack’s plan was to build up his executive staff, like a sort of “line of succession,” to be able to fill that role whenever it became available “depending on what the city needed.”
“While it was sudden, between the leadership training, working collaboratively with the fire department, especially doing a lot of emergency planning, I think he has set us up to where we’re in a good place to move on and continue excelling as an agency,” Lamb said.
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The new interim chief ― whose salary has since been increased from $157,000 to $173,250 ― said he, his wife and two kids, always knew it was a possibility that he’d be chief one day, but it was still a surprise when he broke the news. When asked if he would like to turn the interim title into a permanent one, he said he’d be honored.
“I would be honored to serve in a full-time role as chief of police. I think it helps with the continuity of leadership," Lamb said.
“I think there’s an understanding of what our expectations are as an agency when you have that institutional knowledge and also that community knowledge in a lot of those relationships that I’ve fostered over the last almost 26 years now.”
City spokesperson Kim Miller said there hasn't been a decision yet on whether there will be a job posting for the permanent chief position.
"The city manager has not yet determined next steps for the permanent selection of a new Police Chief and has confidence in the leadership of Interim Chief Lamb and Deputy Chief Stepp in the meantime.”
Lamb said they will wait to fill the deputy chief position until a permanent chief is hired, with Deputy Chief Jackie Stepp and himself overlapping the duties of the administrative and operational deputy chief roles for the time being.
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Lamb's background with APD
Born and raised in Asheville, Lamb has worked in almost every capacity within the police department, he said. He spoke about experiences he had during his five years on patrol, about dealing with drug-related homicides in 2003 while working in the drug suppression unit and about investigating gang-related homicides while a part of the gang unit in 2008.
After the gang unit, Lamb spent a year as sergeant of the downtown bike unit, which he said was “a good experience for me, because I was able to learn and know a lot of the downtown stakeholders and a lot of the legacy businesses.”
Lamb continued as sergeant of criminal investigations, where he worked on different facets of the detective’s division, from major cases to general assignment to violent crimes to homicides, he said. After a two-year stint with the housing unit, Lamb was promoted to lieutenant and later assigned as Charlie District commander, which covers the Central Business District, South French Broad, River Arts District, and neighborhoods along Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.
Lamb said that's where he was in 2020, around the same time as the Covid-19 pandemic and the George Floyd murder, sparking protests against police brutality in Asheville and across the country.
“Then we had mass resignations after that,” Lamb said. “We had to realign the agency and I was able to be promoted to captain over the Community Engagement Division.”
In June, Lamb was promoted to deputy chief. Having mostly been on the operational side of the agency, Lamb admitted that he “will definitely need some help with the political landscape.”
“When it comes to political strategy, I think simple is best and being as honest and transparent as possible,” Lamb said.
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Update on staffing numbers
Lamb said APD has made some improvements to staffing numbers, currently down 38% in staffing as compared to 42% in October, although he said they’d be in a better place if it wasn’t for retirements this last year.
APD should have a total of 238 officers at full staff, according to Lamb. This total will change in the next budget year, as the department has eliminated some of those positions to hire civilian positions, Lamb said.
Currently, APD has 174 officers, which includes the five cadets graduating Basic Law Enforcement Training this week, the five that are starting BLET in January, and officers on medical, family, vacation or military leave.
Because not all these officers are currently available, the department calculates the percentage it’s understaffed by the number of officers actively serving the public.
“We feel like it’s important to put out that 38% number because that is operationally who is serving the citizens of the community,” Lamb said.
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Ryley Ober is the Public Safety Reporter for Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @ryleyober
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville Interim Chief Lamb discusses future of police department
