AUSTIN (KXAN) — As the search for Austin’s police chief continues, KXAN has learned new details surrounding Milwaukee Chief Jeffrey Norman’s reputation among law enforcement members within the LGBTQ+ community.
Last week, Norman along with candidate Lisa Davis, Cincinnati Police assistant chief visited Austin for their first in-person meet and greet with APD and the Austin community.
KXAN spoke to an Austin police officer (who asked to remain anonymous) and active member of the Lesbian & Gay Peace Officers Association of Austin (LGPOA), a nonprofit organization that supports current and retired LGBTQ+ employees of the Austin Police Department, who explained the importance of having a chief who will continue to support LGTBQ+ officers, the community, and LGPOA’s mission.
The officer told KXAN Davis met with LGPOA but Norman did not while they were in Austin for the meet and greet.
KXAN reached out to Norman directly for a comment about not meeting with the association during his visit and will update this story as soon as a response is received.
According to the City of Austin, Norman was delayed arriving to Austin due to the CrowdStrike outage, however the officer felt there was little effort on Norman’s part to meet with the association.
According to the officer, that was concerning given the support LGPOA has established on a local and international level.
KXAN learned that the Austin Police Department, in conjunction with LGPOA, was selected to host the 4th World LGBTQ Conference for Criminal Justice Professionals in 2025.
Veteran Milwaukee LGBTQ+ officer
KXAN tracked down a veteran officer (who asked to remain anonymous) with more than 20 years with the Milwaukee Police Department who is also a member of the LGBTQ+ community to learn more about Norman’s reputation in the community there.
“Generally speaking as chief, he’s not the worst, but there’s no clear leadership or momentum to move forward,” the officer said.
When KXAN asked the officer about his reputation among the LGBTQ+ community in Milwaukee, the officer described Norman as “not engaging” and explained he felt Norman has never put in effort to show support or establish relationships to further develop his presence among the community within the department or the public.
KXAN asked the officer for examples of how Norman has developed this reputation.
In response, the officer told KXAN that officers in the community requested approval from their leadership to have Pride patches at their own expense, which was denied without an explanation.
APD officers are allowed to have and wear Pride patches should they choose to do so.
Additionally, the officer told KXAN Norman has never attended a public or law enforcement Pride event in the community since he became chief.
KXAN requested a comment from Norman about each of these specific claims and will update this story once a response is received.
Requests were also submitted to LGBTQ+ liaisons’ at both the Milwaukee Police Department and the Cincinnati Police Department asking about Norman and Davis’ involvement and level of support they provide.
KXAN is currently waiting a response from both departments.
As of March 2021, Austin had the third highest LGBTQ+ population for large metropolitan areas in the U.S., according to a UCLA Williams Institute School of Law report.