Oscar Perez, a native of Colombia whose law enforcement career bridges two sharply different eras in Rhode Island’s largest law enforcement agency, was named Friday as the new chief of the Providence Police Department.
Providence Mayor Brett Smiley made the selection in his capacity as the city’s acting public safety commissioner two days after Perez and two other finalists participated in a public forum.
While Smiley praised the other finalists, Providence Police Majs. David Lapatin and Kevin Lanni, he said his choice of Perez was largely based on their rapport.
“What I heard from other mayors around the country time and time again, was that trust and personal rapport and that one-on-one relationship is invaluable,” Smiley said during a City Hall news conference, “and that weighed heavily on me.”
Perez, 52, whose family emigrated to Rhode Island from Colombia when he was 13, said he was proud, humbled and honored by his selection as chief.
“I know it is an amazing privilege to lead the men and women of this excellent police department,” Perez said. “The city of Providence has seen me age and develop into who I am. This great city has provided me with the opportunities of a lifetime, and without a doubt has made a dream come true.”
Perez was elevated in November by former mayor Jorge Elorza to the rank of deputy chief, overseeing daily operations and administration. He has also served as a district commander for South Providence and developed a community relations bureau for the department.
Perez is the first person of color to be named chief of the Providence Police Department.
“The fact that you have someone like myself standing here, what do we tell our community members?” he asked. “It’s definitely a historic moment, it’s a proud moment. It’s a way to tell my community and to the young kids out there that says, ‘You can be here as well.’”
Perez, who will be the subject of a yet-to-be-scheduled ceremonial swearing-in, succeeds Hugh Clements, who was widely lauded and respected for his efforts during a 12-year tenure as chief. Clements was named last month as director of the Office of Community Policing Services for the U.S. Justice Department.
The new chief said his first order of business is to meet with community members, officers, and the mayor’s office.
Perez said it’s important for Providence “to have the right officers with the right training with the right life experiences to police the city. We’re a majority-minority city and we have to make sure that every officer that we hire has the qualities to police the city in a proper, constitutional manner.”
Perez is a graduate of Central High School. He said he was influenced to become a police officer by a department member and joined the Providence squad in 1994. He has a BS in criminal justice from Roger Williams University and a master of science degree in criminal justice from Boston University.
Perez’s 29-year policing career reaches back to Buddy Cianci’s second tenure at City Hall. In the years leading up to Cianci’s imprisonment on a charge of racketeering conspiracy, the Providence Police Department was wracked by an exam-testing scandal, police brutality complaints and other forms of dysfunction.
Smiley said he has not yet decided whether to fill the public safety commissioner position, most recently held by Steven Paré, a former State Police colonel. The mayor said Perez will choose his deputy.
Ian Donnis can be reached at idonnis@ripr.org
