City of Inkster swears in new police chief

INKSTER, Mich. (WJBK) - The troubled Inkster Police Department swore in a new chief Monday morning. William T. Riley III comes from Selma, Ala., and has the record showing he turned around that once-troubled city.

"It is clear - and it was definitely clear when I first came here and I visited the city and I spoke with my citizens myself - it was very clear they did not trust the police. It was clear. And that's something we're just going to have to change," he says.

His story is one that can't be told without the police dash cam video of Officer William Melendez allegedly beating Floyd Dent after a traffic stop in January. He's hoping to change the tide of the city's reputation.

"One of the horrible things I looked at was a video, of a beating that is just unacceptable. For me, it is unacceptable, and I know it's got to be unacceptable for not only for the city government but as well for the citizens," he says.

Putting the past away will take time. The criminal trial for former Officer Melendez happens in October, and the city of Inkster has to pay out $1.4 million to Dent.

"I think his emphasis on community policing will help. He's going to engage the community, and, at the end of the day, any police department - any city - needs the help of its residents," says Stuhldreher. "He's going to bring stability."

"Top on my list will be body cams. I think that's very important and that's something we'll sit down with city government and we'll discuss financianing and how to bring that on board," says Riley.

His starting salary is $88,000 a year.