In a surprise announcement, the City of Kalamazoo announced late Wednesday that Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety Chief Karianne Thomas, a 27 year veteran of the department, is retiring at the end of the month. Her final day will be September 30th. Named the new Chief is Vernon Coakley, who has been at KDPS for 22 years. Prior to that he was a police officer in Detroit.
They're also very adamant that heavy restrictions and policies be put in place if a real need for them occurs. The group believes eliminating police presence is a necessary safety measure and an important step in eliminating the School to Prison Pipeline.