Teresa Ewins was hired as Lincoln’s police chief nearly two years ago following a national search. After she abruptly resigned last month, assistant chief Michon Morrow was elevated to interim police chief. She has been on the job for less than a month and says so far, so good.
“It’s going great. It’s been fast, but exciting and I feel very energized and just looking forward to the direction our department is going.” Morrow has been with LPD since 1995 and told KLIN News during a sit down interview this week that she didn’t apply for the police chief’s position two years ago because she wasn’t ready.
“I was at a point where my kids were in high school. It was that last opportunity to spend good quality time and not miss those last moments of high school, their last track meets and baseball games.” Morrow is in a different place in her life now and says if given the opportunity she is ready to lead the department as the permanent police chief. ” I am absolutely at a point to where I believe I can be that effective leader and be what this organization needs and be what our community needs.”
She tells KLIN growing up she had no intentions of following in her father’s footsteps to a career in law enforcement. “I had aspirations of medical school,” Morrow says. She enrolled in pre-med classes at Nebraska Wesleyan University her freshman year. “And I ended up being the victim of stalking.”
She reached out to LPD’s Victim’s Assistance Unit and that eventually led to an internship at LPD at age of 19. “And I never left.” Morrow says there are a number of challenges facing the department, including recruiting and retaining officers. She says some new tools are helping in that effort.
“With the state legislature providing free education for law enforcement officers and their dependents and the City of Lincoln six weeks of paid parental leave,” Morrow says. “We believe those things along with our salary and benefits along with out organization and what we stand for sets us apart.”
Morrow says being transparent with the public is important moving forward. She hasn’t decided if the department will go back to having daily media briefings.