15248: Hermantin: Miami police trailblazer a symbol of Haitian pride (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: leonie hermantin <lhermantin@hotmail.com>

Posted on Fri, Apr. 04, 2003

Miami police trailblazer a symbol of Haitian pride
BY DRAEGER MARTINEZ
drmartinez@herald.com


Gary Eugene has made a career of blazing new paths in his 18 years as a
Miami police officer: He was the first Haitian-American sergeant,
lieutenant, captain -- and now commander, one of only nine in the
department's top brass.

Along the way, Eugene has also become the department's informal ambassador
to Haitian Americans by speaking at church services and youth activities,
broadcasting police perspectives on Creole radio shows and establishing a
group of community policing volunteers that has grown to more than 100
people.

Word of his latest promotion, to become official at a ceremony today, has
drawn a chorus of praise from Haitian-American community activists
throughout Miami-Dade County.

''It's about time! Do you know how long we've waited for something like
this? Twelve years,'' said Lucie Tondreau, an activist with the Haitian
American Community Association. ``This will reflect well on the entire
community.''

Tondreau called Eugene friendly, modest and down-to-earth -- a far cry from
police in Haiti, who she said are often synonymous with the nation's brutal
dictatorships. ''He goes onto the radio to educate the community,'' she
said. ``He talks to everyone to let them know the rules, so we can stay safe
within our rights, and also so we do not get harassed or questioned during
our event.''

Eugene says it's all been worthwhile. ''Haitians are very friendly and once
they saw we are not an oppressive force, they welcomed us with open arms,''
he said. ``Everyone has a civil duty to get involved. The U.S. has been
great to me and I feel I owe my countrymen.''

Born in Port-au-Prince on Nov. 5, 1956, Eugene moved to New York City in
1978, then to Miami in 1981. Eugene attended nursing school and graduated in
1983, then worked 1 ½ years as a nurse before entering the Miami police
academy in 1985. He had nothing against nursing -- he just believed he could
make a bigger difference as a police officer.

As a new commander, Eugene will take charge of the Neighborhood Enhancement
Team, or NET, details for Little Haiti and Miami's Upper Eastside.

Although a few other Haitian-American officers have reached high ranks, such
as former Florida City police chief Marc Elias, Eugene currently stands as
the highest-ranking Haitian-American officer in South Florida.

The Miami Police Department boasts that Eugene may be the highest-ranking
Haitian officer in the country. Spokesmen for the Boston, Los Angeles, New
York City and Chicago police departments said they have no Haitian-American
officers of equivalent rank.

Miami city commissioner Arthur Teele Jr. praised Eugene as a first-class
community police officer who could rise all the way to the top.

''I could easily see him some day becoming the police chief,'' Teele said.
``He's as cheerful and as loyal as any officer as I've encountered. When he
took charge of the Little Haiti NET office, he didn't have a desk to work
from, [so] he would take paperwork and do it from the back seat of his
car.''

Eugene said when he joined the police department, it had only one other
Haitian-American officer. Police spokeswoman Vivian Pombo said that the
department does not keep a tally of how many Haitian Americans work in the
department, though a survey conducted last November found 39 officers who
speak Creole, including Eugene.

The commander-to-be credits his rise to a deep understanding of the
Haitian-American community, and good timing. ''Shortly after I joined, the
SIS [Special Investigations Service] needed another Haitian speaker, so I
got transferred there in 1987,'' Eugene said Thursday. ``They were a very
elite unit and they needed people who could relate to the Haitian-American
community.''

Major Juanita Walker-Kirkland, who commands the department's Community
Affairs unit, considers him a mentor to junior Haitian-American officers.
''He's someone they can come to for advice or when they're having problems,
because he will give an honest answer,'' she said.

Many of Eugene's fans don't know about the day he endangered his life to
save another man's. The captain says he won't ever forget: Feb. 7, 1991, the
day Haiti inaugurated Jean-Bertrand Aristide as president.

''I monitored the celebration here in Miami, which drew between 8,000 and
10,000 people,'' said Eugene, who attended in plain clothes, not his police
uniform. ``The crowd was mad at this one man because, for some reason, they
thought he was related to an ex-dictator in Haiti. He drew a gun in
self-defense and shot two people. Thankfully, both of them lived.''

The crowd surrounded the gunman and started beating him, but Eugene waded
into the melee and persuaded the man to set aside his gun. He escorted the
gunman long enough to get him transported to a hospital, as the crowd threw
rocks and bottles, striking them both.

''One man even tried to smash him in the head with a chunk of concrete from
the base of a stop sign. I moved the young man's head out of the way, so the
chunk hit my foot instead,'' Eugene said. ``He and his family made a point
to thank me two days later for saving his life.''

Eugene's promotion ceremony will be at 10 a.m. today, in a ceremony at Miami
City Hall, 3500 Pan American Dr.







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