EXCLUSIVE: Police chief defends Springfield residents, blasts government’s poor management of migrant crisis
CANDACE HATHAWAY
'It's not you. It's the way the government does things.'
The government's mishandling of the immigration situation in Springfield, Ohio, has caused otherwise avoidable "turmoil" between residents and Haitian nationals, Tremont City Police Chief Chad Duncan told Blaze News' Julio Rosas.
Duncan echoed concerns other residents have voiced to Blaze News that local and federal governments have failed to even try to assimilate the foreign nationals into the community's existing culture before flooding the area with such large numbers of new arrivals.
'It's not good for either side, and that's a shame.'
Bill Monaghan, a former journalist, recently told Rosas that many locals have self-censored over fears of being labeled racist or intolerant for voicing their concerns. When some have spoken out about lack of housing and increases in traffic accidents, the city has either ignored them or insinuated that their concerns "are based in some sort of misplaced racial antipathy," he stated.
"Being ignored and being called racist is, I think, a big part of the reason why people are concerned about talking," Monaghan remarked.
Duncan explained that the situation in Springfield has spilled over into nearby towns, including Tremont City. According to the police chief, many of the surrounding municipalities are trying to crack down on the increase in reckless driving and unlicensed drivers by towing vehicles, but Springfield is not.
"The impact is that people that shouldn't be driving are out there, and they're allowing them to drive," Duncan told Rosas. "A lot of these people aren't even getting cited after they get in a wreck."
As a result of the increased traffic accidents, many caused by unlicensed Haitian drivers, insurance rates in the area have gone up, the police chief told Blaze News.
"People are losing their lives. I mean, it's a big impact," he continued. "I tow their vehicle because that is the only way to get them to stop, or at least try to stop them."
"I found hitting people's pocketbooks gets their attention, and a tow around here is about $400 when you're all said and done. And then they have the citation to pay for," Duncan noted.
He told Rosas about an unlicensed individual whom he pulled over and towed his vehicle twice in a two-week period. In one of those instances, the individual was "coming through town at 44 miles an hour in a 25-mile-zone," Duncan said.
When asked whether Springfield would have towed the driver's vehicle in that situation, Duncan stated police there would not have.
"If you look at the protective status for these refugees or immigrants," Duncan said, referring to the federal government's Temporary Protected Status program, "if you get two misdemeanors, you are subject to be deported."
Duncan explained that the driver he stopped had three misdemeanors for operating a vehicle without a license. He questioned whether the individual would be likely to face any real consequences.
Further creating issues in Tremont City, Duncan stated that he could no longer listen in on the Springfield Police Division's radio frequency since the city started receiving national attention over the immigration crisis. He speculated that the department may have turned it off to reduce criticism by concealing its activity.
"That makes a huge impact for us, because if they have a shooting in the city or they're on a chase in the city and they end up in the county, and I don't know about it — we've had them come through Tremont at 100 miles an hour. Think about that. That's a 25 mile-an-hour street with little kids walking around on it," he said.
According to Duncan, all of the issues now facing the community as a result of the massive influx in immigration could have been avoided.
"There was an alternative way that would have been beneficial to everybody involved," he continued. "I just want everyone to understand that we're not against the Haitians."
"We understand. Anybody that has a heart, that has any empathy, has any intelligence, when your home country is the way Haiti is right now, you want to get out. You want to find safety, and you want to take care of your family and yourself," Duncan remarked.
Duncan stated he is frustrated with the government's failure to provide services to assimilate the immigrants. He argued that the Haitian nationals should have first been placed in one centralized location where they were taught English, how to drive, and how to find work before sending them into U.S. communities. He explained that such a process would have avoided placing all the hardship on one community.
"If they had taken the time, instead of worrying about the elites lining their pockets, and just took the time, this could have went so much smoother and been so much more beneficial to everybody involved," he added.
Instead, the mishandled situation has caused confusion and frustration for locals and Haitians living in the area, Duncan said.
"You've got a city that's in absolute turmoil. Everybody's against everybody," he stated.
Duncan told Rosas that he had recently spoken with a young Haitian woman whom he had pulled over after she had driven around a barricade.
"She had her license. She had her insurance. She had a registration. Everything was squared away. So obviously, that didn't result in any citations or anything," he explained.
Duncan stated that he told the young woman, "'I just want you to understand that we're not against you Haitians, okay? We want you to be here. We just don't like the way our government puts you here. It doesn't help you. It doesn't help us.' And she started to cry. She's like, 'I thought you guys just hated us.' I said, 'No, it's not you. It's the way the government does things.'"
"We kind of built a little bridge there, and that's what it's all about," he said.
"I don't have a problem with them. I understand what's going on in that country," Duncan said, referring to Haiti.
"The end result is, we're just going to constantly have turmoil because they haven't adjusted to our culture," he added. "It's not good for either side, and that's a shame."
After several unanswered calls to the Springfield Police Division, the department told Blaze News in an emailed statement, "Thanks for your interest. I will see what we can get to you, but your deadline is tight and we do not have capacity right now with all the media requests we are getting. We will get back to you as soon as practical."
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