CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The 1990s in Charlotte was a different time, from the Uptown skyline to the needs of families below.
There to witness it all was then-patrolman Johnny Jennings, responding as an officer for Charlotte Police before the agency merged with the Mecklenburg County Police Department in October of 1993.
As the combined agency looks to celebrate 30 years this week, now-Chief Jennings sat down with WCNC Charlotte for a one-on-one discussion on the past, present, and future of the police department.
He said the '90s in Charlotte were "a lot different" with "crime hot spots," as they called them at the time, driven by the use of crack cocaine, which was a national issue.
"Our approach back then was to target those open-air drug markets and it was a no-tolerance approach," Jennings said.
As the years went by, community policing became a point of focus as the country explored a new way to respond.
“As we've evolved over the years, we look at the fact that when you're arresting somebody for possession of drugs and you’re looking at, they have four, five, six, seven and eight arrests for possession of drugs, well, there's a deeper issue there," Jennings said. "Eventually, we had had to learn how do we best provide services to the people that we serve to include them into how we approach their neighborhoods and their communities.”
Right now in Charlotte, homicides remain a problem, but the city is seeing new issues compared to 30 years ago. Those issues include street takeovers and a rise in car thefts that are being driven by social media.
Jennings said initiatives like their crime gun suppression team are helping crack down on crime and get weapons out of the hands of criminals. He touted the program's success at reducing violent crime for the third straight year but is concerned that suspects continue to get younger and younger.
"If we continue to see those young people get even younger, that are committing those violent crimes, that should be concerning to not just the police department, but all of our community," Jennings said. "I do think that it has to be holistic and has to be the responsibility of not just on entity."
As CMPD looks toward the future, they're exploring ways to combat new threats posed by advanced technology.
"We have done a great deal within our agency to make sure that we stay on the forefront of technology, and we have to continue to do that for the next 30 years," Jennings said. "So, hopefully, when they have their 60-year anniversary, I don't see me being here, but I certainly would love to come back and celebrate that with them.”
The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department will open a new expo and historical museum on Thursday, Sept. 28 at One Independence Center showcasing artifacts that represent the agency's history. That's located at 101 N. Tryon Street in Uptown Charlotte.
Contact Kayland Hagwood at khagwood@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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