Departments
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Week of 13 March 1998 |
Vol. I, No. 23 |
Feature
Article
Police Chief Devlin leaves force with proud legacy
by Brian Fitzgerald
After 11 years as head of the Boston University Police Department, Chief Steven Devlin (CAS'73) is leaving the force to take a consultant position with an East Coast firm that assesses the dangers of domestic abuse, stalking, and threats of violence in the workplace. On April 1, BUPD Deputy Chief Robert Shea will take over as interim chief of the department.
It is no easy task to protect a university community of 29,000 students and 6,000 employees on the Charles River and Medical Campuses, along with managing a $2.9 million operations budget, but Devlin says that his experience at BU has been "quite rewarding" and he is leaving his job "in extremely capable hands."
Shea, who has been deputy chief for six years, was the police chief in Belmont, Mass., from 1963 to 1992. "We'll miss him," says Shea. "The department has always been moving forward, especially in the areas of technology, community policing, and domestic violence." Devlin, who joined the BUPD in 1975, has been active in a variety of task forces addressing these issues.
Shea says that the depth in leadership on the force -- BUPD Captain and Patrol Commander Enrico Cappucci is another former police chief (Duxbury, Mass.) -- is a further example of the many improvements that have been made to the Boston University Police over the years. The BUPD's 58 officers have all received Police Academy training, which wasn't the case before 1987.
Devlin also points to the installation of 60 emergency blue-light phones on campus, additional outdoor lighting, and the introduction of bicycle patrol officers.
Devlin, a graduate of BU (a classics major), the Massachusetts State Police Academy, the Boston Police Academy, and the FBI National Academy, is particularly proud of several accomplishments in the department, including its field training officer program. "The level of police training now is much more comprehensive and intense than it was in the '70s and '80s," he says. "It covers a much wider curriculum, including the handling of hazardous materials, domestic violence, scientific evidence, and even cults."
Vice President of Enrollment Anne Shea, a former BU deputy police chief herself, notes that Devlin has led a force that is as large as many urban police departments. "He rose through the ranks," she says. "He was a patrolman, a sergeant, a lieutenant, and then chief."
A reception will be held for Devlin at The Castle on Friday, March 27, from 5 to 7 p.m.