Phila. Police head to take job with Drexel

Richard Neal, the head of the city's police force, will join the university as a consultant. Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Neal, who has been widely criticized during his six-year tenure for his management style and failure to cut crime across the city, said yesterday he will resign next month to take a consulting job with Drexel University's security department. Neal's resignation came after a private meeting with Mayor Ed Rendell Wednesday and followed months of speculation that he would step down. The 58-year-old commissioner has come under fire for everything from neglecting to tackle "drug corners" to punishing officers for talking to the media. Also, he has been criticized for being slow to adopt crime-fighting tactics that have enabled other cities to cut crime dramatically. In 1997, when most cities had plummeting crime rates, Philadelphia's stayed remarkably static. It is unclear who will take Neal's place as commissioner when he leaves on March 6. Neal was unavailable for comment yesterday. "This should be a refreshing change of pace for him," said Penn Managing Director of Public Safety Tom Seamon, a former Philadelphia Police deputy commissioner under Neal. Neal is Seamon's former boss. But when Seamon left his Philadelphia post in 1995 to head Penn's Division of Public Safety, he took a job that is both more demanding and more powerful than the job Neal will assume. Drexel had initially offered Neal the position last December. Seamon said his work at Penn has been "a very challenging assignment," adding that it includes not only managing police, but also security guards and technology. According to Seamon, Penn and Drexel have "different conditions." Drexel is smaller, has a large commuter population and lacks a police department, making Drexel's public safety operations less complicated to manage, Seamon said. Drexel officials said their hiring of Neal was part of a "long-term initiative" to "enhance" safety on campus. Drexel, which employs about 100 Spectaguard security guards, plans to promote its current security director, Richard Cottom, to the position of associate vice president for public safety and auxiliary services. Neal's official title at the school will be "security consultant." His salary for the job -- which he will earn in addition to a $92,000-a-year pension from the city -- has not been disclosed. "Richard Neal's extensive experience and skills in public safety and law enforcement will help build our public safety program into a model for other universities," Drexel University President Constantine Papadakis said in a statement yesterday. Neal has worked for the Philadelphia Police Department since 1962, when he began as a beat patrol officer in the 12th District in Southwest Philadelphia. He later became captain of the 19th District in Northwest Philadelphia and an interim chief of the Philadelphia Housing Authority Police. Neal was the city's chief inspector when he was named the police commissioner, replacing Chief Willie Williams, who traveled to Los Angeles to replace Chief Daryl Gates. Gates stepped down after Rodney King's beating by police prompted city-wide riots. Philadelphia officials chose Neal as commissioner over nine finalists, including Seamon, who was the acting police commissioner at the time. Seamon later was one of four finalists to become the city police commissioner of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., before he came to the University in October 1995. Neal spoke at Penn last month at the opening of the Division of Public Safety's new headquarters at 4040 Chestnut Street. At the event, he said he felt some "envy" for the new building.