March 19, 2002

A Command Performer

Police Commander Peter Newsham Puts the Second District First

By Jane Lingo

Second District Police Commander Peter Newsham has a modest, direct manner that cloaks a quiet dedication to the safety of the residents and neighborhoods under his protection.

Arriving at his present post in January 2000, he is a veteran of some 12 years of police work, and has had broad experience in many parts of the city.

“I was an officer in the Sixth District, a sergeant in the Seventh, a lieutenant in the Fifth, and then a captain in the Sixth,” he recalls. In spring 2000, he received his law degree from the University of Maryland Law School and is a Bar Association member in Maryland and DC. He earned his undergraduate degree from the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA.

One of his first assignments as commander was protecting the neighborhood in the spring of 2000 during the World Bank and International Monetary Fund meetings. “It was a huge drain on the police,” he says. “We had shifts that lasted 16 hours. We were very concerned about whether we could protect everybody. We didn’t think we’d have the people to give the same protection in the city. We needed to protect the students, the protesters, the people at the meetings, and the residents. One group of officers had to sleep here (at the Second District’s Indiana Avenue headquarters). We actually have some cots. One night they really only got about four hours sleep.”
Newsham observes that it is very predictable that those types of large crowds are going to be drawn to meetings of organizations such as the World Bank and the IMF.

“There’s other venues which would be a lot easier to protect,” he comments.
Since Sept. 11, he sees changes in the neighborhoods. “People are being more careful,” he says. “I think a lot of people are trying to be vigilant, alert. People want to know what they can do. We emphasize vigilance. People should watch for things like an unusual package, a bag left unattended.”

Newsham comes to his office at Second District headquarters by 8 am. “A lot of times, the community needs help in the evening,” he says. “When you’re district commander, you’re on call 24 hours a day.” There are nine patrol service areas (PSA) in the Second District with a lieutenant assigned to each of them. The University is in PSA 207.

A new initiative in the Second District is a program to recruit reserves and interns to work with the police. A prime mover in this effort is Jim Lively of the Georgetown Advisory Neighborhood Commission. Lively wants the various ANC representatives to recruit people for the program.

“We’ll do everything we can to reduce crime with this added personnel,” says Newsham. “Chief Charles Ramsey wants to increase the reserves. The reserve program is voluntary. The volunteers actually serve with us and wear our uniforms. One of [GW’s] deans works here.”

Richard Southby, interim dean of the School of Public Health and Health Services, who also is the Ross Professor of International Health and professor of health care sciences. Southby holds the rank of lieutenant and works out of the Second District headquarters.

The GW Community Policing Station on 22nd Street (opened in March 2000) is a help to officers in the neighborhood.

“It is used. I’ve seen police cars there,” Newsham says. “It gives a visibility to the area and gives officers opportunity to do reports and use the phone and the desks there.”

Looking back on changes in the police department, Newsham says, “We went through a real economic downturn in 1995. We had almost no money at all. Now there is a significant difference. We have a lot more and better equipment.”

One change in the Second District is that it is not possible to give leave so freely as it was in the past.

“There was a tendency to give leave quite readily and then we sometimes did not have enough people,” Newsham says. “Officers are often away for training, leave, or sickness. A lot of times we can’t give leave. We need people on duty. A majority of the officers understand this and take it very well.”

According to 2001 MPD statistics, crime in the Second District dropped by 12 percent. “We monitor our statistics city-wide on a daily basis,” the commander explains. He notes the next closest district was the fourth, adding that some districts actually experienced increases in crime. The district commanders meet regularly with Chief Ramsey and the executive assistant chief, Terry Gainer, to discuss trends and concerns.

Among the issues the chiefs and commanders discuss is traffic, but Newsham is always open to hearing more feedback from those in the community.

“Traffic is a huge issue in the city,” he observes. “We had a community meeting not long ago and it seems that people feel the police and DPW [Department of Public Works] have been more responsive of late. If people don’t complain, they don’t get anything done. I think it’s very important for them to tell me. Then, I know what they want. People are very polite and respectful in the way they present things.”

Newsham is not the only member of his family to heed the call to protect and serve. An uncle is chief of police in Providence, RI, and several other uncles are on the force there, as well. He also has a brother who worked for two years with MPD in Washington and then returned to Massachusetts to continue as a police officer there.

Asked what he likes most about his work, Newsham modestly answers, “I think you like it whenever you can feel as though you’re helping people.”

 

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