New DeKalb County police Chief Cedric Alexander said Monday his department must do everything it can to decrease crime in the community and the county as a whole.
The new chief, hired in February, was sworn in Monday morning and spent the day touring parts of the county, including Oak Grove Market. Alexander and county CEO Burrell Ellis met with lunchtime diners and local political figures who stopped by for the event, including District 4's DeKalb County Board of Education member Jim McMahan and his predecessor H. Paul Womack, both nearby residents.
In an interview with Patch before he left, Alexander talked about his policing priorities, and Ellis addressed a comment by District 5 county Commissioner Lee May at a recent Lakeside City Alliance meeting that the police department could use as many as 500 additional officers.