The Chief: McManus talks about his life, his officers, and his plans

SAN ANTONIO -- Police Chief Bill McManus is at the forefront of protecting people in San Antonio, and the job leaves him little time to spare.

News 4 WOAI's Kristina De Leon found out the phrase 'a very busy man' is one of the best ways to describe Chief Bill McManus, and spending a day with him means you had better be ready to hit the ground running.

The day started with the chief dropping off one of his three kids at school.

"It gives me a few minutes to spend, a few minutes with them before they get to school and before I get to work," Chief McManus told News 4 WOAI.

Then, it was on for a brief stop at his office, which is lined with awards, family photos, and symbols of his faith. Right away, he was on his way to a conference call with deputy chiefs and assistant chiefs.

"We go over the the events in the last 24 hours to make sure that everybody knows what's going on," explained Chief McManus.

Up next, another meeting covering a sting that will happen later this month. Then, it was off to City Hall for a meeting with his boss, City Manager Sheryl Sculley.

When asked how close his relationship is with Sculley, Chief McManus answered, "We have...a close working relationship. And it's necessary to have a close working relationship because part of my job is to make sure she's aware of everything that's going on in the department."

After leaving City Hall, he was off for a quick trip across the street to San Fernando Cathedral.

"And if I'm not able to make Mass, then typically I'll stop in just for a few minutes," Chief McManus said.

When asked why, McManus added, "Well, it gives you a little bit of down time, a little bit of time to reflect. And that's important, because all day long, it's like 'go, go, go, go' and one thing after another. It just gives you a little rest and again, a little bit of time to reflect."

And that was just part of the day. News 4 WOAI's Kristina De Leon also sat the chief down to ask him some tough questions about public safety and his plans for the future.

Tough questions and plans for the future

Chief Bill McManus says the most important task for his department is to maintain the public's trust, and he has set some goals for the city with that in mind.

"The goal overall...the long range goal is to, you know, reduce crime as far down as we can reduce it," Chief McManus said. "And along that, instill the public's trust to a level where it's never been instilled before."

The chief said it takes every officer on the department to help make that happen. Unfortunately, a half dozen have been disciplined for misconduct this year, so far.

"It does a disservice to every member of this department who goes out everyday, puts their lives on the line, uh, in trying to serve the public, complained McManus. "And then to have someone come along, some officer come along, and do something that destroys all the work that all these great officers do. So, we have zero tolerance for this kind of misconduct."

As a result of that zero tolerance, 3 officers have been fired from the department.

There have also been 18 officer-involved shootings this year. News 4 WOAI asked the chief if he has trigger-happy offers on the streets.

"No, we don't have trigger happy officers by any means," answered Chief McManus. "These officers respond to the situation that they find themselves in."

Chief McManus said officers react based on what they are trained to do.

"When a suspect is given directions by police to drop their weapons, and they don't follow that command, then there's a high likelihood, there's a potential, that something bad is going to happen," McManus explained. "These officers don't, ...intentionally put themselves in those situations. No one comes to work with the intention of ever shooting anyone or using force on anyone. But officers find themselves in those situations, and they're trained to deal with them."

San Antonio has had a double-digit drop in the murder rate. Chief McManus says he hopes to keep crime rates low through several new initiatives he has put in place to fight robbery, burglary, and property crimes.

"We are here to serve the public, added McManus. "We are striving for continuous improvement, and everything we do is geared towards helping the public and gaining the public's trust."

Chief McManus said he and his family love San Antonio, and he hopes to complete his career here.