City of Madison
Madison Police Chief Shon Barnes has been on the job for just seven months. But the scuttlebutt around city hall is that the new top cop might not be sticking around very long. In an interview with Isthmus, Barnes confirms he’s heard the rumor, too.
“I’m glad you asked. Madison is where I am and where I want to be. I’m here for the long haul and you should print that,” says Barnes. “I love Madison. I love this community. I’m not going anywhere.”
Isthmus received a tip in August from a former Madison police officer that word among the rank-and-file was that Barnes had accepted a position with the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) to begin January 2022.
This rather specific speculation turned out to be no secret among city officials, police union representatives, beat cops, and others with ties to the Madison Police Department. Barnes even tells Isthmus his administrative assistant keeps being asked “Is the chief going to go work for PERF?”
The chief says he doesn’t know where these rumors are coming from but he’s set the record straight within his department and with city leadership.
“He has told me multiple times that he knows that there’s rumors out there about him leaving, and that they’re absolutely not true, that he’s committed to the job,” says Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway. “And I believe him.”
According to its website, PERF is a prominent nonprofit police research and policy organization that provides executive-level education and consultant work for law enforcement agencies. The group helped guide the Madison Police and Fire Commission’s hiring process that ultimately led to Barnes being selected as the city’s next chief of police. PERF also embraces the same data-driven policing philosophy that Barnes has promised to bring to Madison.
Kelly Powers, president of the Madison police union, confirms the chief has addressed the rumors of him accepting a job with PERF with rank-and-file officers. He takes the chief “at his word.” However, he says there are reasons why officers suspected the chief might be leaving soon.
“To be fair, he was a product of PERF, because they ran the process that ultimately led to him being hired here. So, logic says he has a relationship with them,” says Powers. “You look at the culture behind policing, particularly locally, I don’t know that he has a very easy job right now. You can’t blame people for thinking [the chief] might jump at an opportunity with PERF because it sure seems like a good fit.”
Powers says rumors that Barnes is leaving are also fueled by the fact that his wife and three school-aged children have not moved to Madison and have no plans to do so in the immediate future. Barnes is renting an apartment downtown, a short walk to his office at the City County Building. But his family continues to reside in Park Ridge, Illinois. His wife, Stephanie Dance-Barnes, who holds a doctorate degree in cancer biology/toxicology, accepted a position in April 2020 to be the dean of DePaul University’s College of Science and Health.
“I wouldn’t want to live two hours away from my family…. So I think that’s part of the reason why this rumor seems to be sticking around,” says Powers. “It’s nothing personal against the chief whatsoever. But in terms of day-to-day life, it seems like he’s going to have a transient relationship with work or his family. The chief says that’s not the case; it’s just easy to see why he might have extra incentive to pursue other career options.”
One officer, who asked to remain anonymous, tells Isthmus that many members of the force don’t know what to make of their new boss.
“I’ve been with the department a long time. Chiefs come and go,” says the officer. “All I will say is that good leaders, like good officers, are committed to serving the community. I’m not sure how you do that when your family lives in another community.”
Another officer tells Isthmus, “I wouldn’t say he has been absent as a chief. He doesn’t seem concerned with winning us all over, either.”
Barnes, a former U.S. Marine, began his career in law enforcement in 2000 with the Greensboro Police Department in North Carolina. He rose to the rank of captain before leaving to become deputy chief of police in Salisbury, North Carolina. He briefly served as the director of training and professional development with the Civilian Office of Police Accountability in Chicago, a position he started in August 2020. He holds a doctorate degree in leadership studies.
He confirms that his wife is under contract with DePaul University and that her “career ambitions are just as important as mine.”
“She is without a doubt the most brilliant person that I know. We’re both professionals. We knew when we got married that we both were going to try to reach the highest goals of our chosen profession, me in policing and her in science and we’re working towards that,” says Barnes. “We are committed to supporting each other. My wife is up here every other weekend with the kids, they absolutely love it here. I go down there the other weekends. It’s only an hour and 15-minute drive.”
Barnes says he FaceTimes with his kids every day and is still able to attend their soccer games and other important events. He says the arrangement allows him to work 15-hour days during the week and so far, his family is “thriving.”
“Make no mistake, my wife works just as hard as I do. We don’t live in a country yet where African Americans can afford not to take leadership roles,” says Barnes. “The most important thing is that we are supportive of each other and that’s exactly what we are doing.”
Barnes adds, “You think Dr. Jill Biden and Joe Biden stay in the same house every day? No. Do you think Aaron Rodgers and his wife, I don’t know if he’s married, but if he was, do you think they need to be in the same house every single day?” says Barnes. “I don’t think this is all that uncommon with successful couples. And I gotta mention this. I was told that Madison was progressive. It’s not very progressive to think that because a man gets a job, his wife should leave her job.”
The mayor isn’t worried.
“Frankly, that’s their family’s business. If they’ve decided that they can make it work, good for them. I have to admire that they both have important high-powered jobs and that they’re both committed to them. I think that’s great,” says Rhodes-Conway. “He is digging in, and figuring out his approach. And getting to know Madison and trying to make some needed changes in the department. I think he’s doing a good job.”
Powers says it takes time for any new chief to leave his mark on a department. The agency budget process for 2022 was largely in place before Barnes arrived in February. Powers says how the new chief chooses to allocate resources in the future will be a true test of where he plans to steer the department.
“The organization is largely what it was before [Barnes] got here. He does seem to have a clear data-driven philosophy and approach to policing, some of which is different from what we have traditionally done here in Madison,” says Powers. “But I wouldn’t say he’s upsetting the apple cart organizationally. I think our membership could benefit from some change and we aren’t necessarily opposed to that.”
Barnes says he’s seen different leadership styles in his career in law enforcement. He says it’s intentional that he hasn’t tried to bring sweeping changes to the department on day one.
“I’ve seen chiefs who do that. That’s actually a sign that they don’t intend to be there very long,” says Barnes. “I can take my time and build a police department that’s reflective of community needs, and do it the right way. Because I’m not trying to use this job as a stepping stone.”
The chief says one long-term goal he has is to oversee a graduating class from the Madison Police Academy where the majority of recruits are people of color.
“We can do that. But we have to be intentional about it,” says Barnes. “It may not happen next year, but that’s something that I’m certainly looking forward to.”
Barnes tells Isthmus that in 2016 he participated in a professional development training on strategic planning that included making a vision statement. The process led him to make a five-year plan for his career.
“I kid you not, I wrote down that I would be the chief of a police department by 2020 in Jesus’ name. I got this job in December of 2020, in the middle of a pandemic. That means something to me. I know people in this community don’t like to talk a lot about faith. But when God delivers you something, you need to make good on that promise,” says Barnes. “The last 20 years of my career were about getting to where I am right now. I’ve been waiting for a great community like Madison. We are leaders in policing here, we will continue to be a national model for the rest of the country. I’m committed to this job and to this city. Just you wait.”
