2008 Woodie Awards
He Wanted To Make a Difference
Q & A with Sergeant William T. Fitzgerald Jr.
Michelle Aveyard
Issue date: 9/28/05 Section: News
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Sergeant Fitzgerald is no stranger to the Newport community, having been born and raised here. He even attended Salve Regina University, graduating in 1981 as an Administrative Justice major.
Having always been interested in law, Sgt. Fitzgerald originally was interested in becoming a state trooper and later became very interested in working with the Federal Bureau.
However, this aspiration never materialized as a result of President Reagan's job freeze. Sgt. Fitzgerald decided, then, to join the Newport Police Department and has now been there for about 22 years.
While working for the department, Sgt. Fitzgerald implemented many changes. He was one of the first community police officers in Rhode Island. He is often asked to give lectures at various schools, including Salve, and was even offered a teaching position with the school.
Sgt. Fitzgerald also designed the "Positive Role Model program," which was created in 1991 and is still around today. This program matches up Salve students with kids from varying backgrounds in group homes and promotes a positive interaction between the two.
Due to the strength of this program, many of the kids have gone onto lead very successful lives. Some kids even go on to work for the Newport Police Department. As head of the Community Policing Unit, Sgt. Fitzgerald is a very active part of the community.
MA: Is it different working with the Police Department during the summer and more specifically during tourist season, as opposed to the rest of the year when Salve is in session?
SF: It's pretty consistent between summer and winter. The perception is that Salve causes problems, but that's not necessarily the case. The total crime rate is down 21%, and it's down 61% since 1981.
MA: Do you receive a lot of complaints from Newport residents about college parties?
SF: We have a list of known party houses we keep maintained. When you look at the noise complaints from last year they do have a 19% increase, but from 1981 it's an 89% decrease. Residents are more vocal now when something happens. ...All I can say is talk to the neighbors before you sign a lease. If they say it's had problems in the past, get the hell out of there. Like we've always had a lot of problems on Howard Street, but a lot of the people living there now don't know that. Kids get put into houses that had past problems, and kids don't realize. It's very important that the kids talk to the residents.
Having always been interested in law, Sgt. Fitzgerald originally was interested in becoming a state trooper and later became very interested in working with the Federal Bureau.
However, this aspiration never materialized as a result of President Reagan's job freeze. Sgt. Fitzgerald decided, then, to join the Newport Police Department and has now been there for about 22 years.
While working for the department, Sgt. Fitzgerald implemented many changes. He was one of the first community police officers in Rhode Island. He is often asked to give lectures at various schools, including Salve, and was even offered a teaching position with the school.
Sgt. Fitzgerald also designed the "Positive Role Model program," which was created in 1991 and is still around today. This program matches up Salve students with kids from varying backgrounds in group homes and promotes a positive interaction between the two.
Due to the strength of this program, many of the kids have gone onto lead very successful lives. Some kids even go on to work for the Newport Police Department. As head of the Community Policing Unit, Sgt. Fitzgerald is a very active part of the community.
MA: Is it different working with the Police Department during the summer and more specifically during tourist season, as opposed to the rest of the year when Salve is in session?
SF: It's pretty consistent between summer and winter. The perception is that Salve causes problems, but that's not necessarily the case. The total crime rate is down 21%, and it's down 61% since 1981.
MA: Do you receive a lot of complaints from Newport residents about college parties?
SF: We have a list of known party houses we keep maintained. When you look at the noise complaints from last year they do have a 19% increase, but from 1981 it's an 89% decrease. Residents are more vocal now when something happens. ...All I can say is talk to the neighbors before you sign a lease. If they say it's had problems in the past, get the hell out of there. Like we've always had a lot of problems on Howard Street, but a lot of the people living there now don't know that. Kids get put into houses that had past problems, and kids don't realize. It's very important that the kids talk to the residents.