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New chief is one of us

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Photo by Dan Lassiter

David Moore is Janesville's new Chief of Police.

JANESVILLE — When Dave Moore was a kid, he had a life-changing moment.

He was a 12-year-old boy, and he and his buddies were playing by the railroad tracks off Memorial Drive. A grass fire broke out, drawing police cars, fire trucks and sirens.

In the midst of the chaos, a train came chugging through. A little girl stood in its way.

“She was standing right on the tracks just frozen in fear. It was a horrible scene,” Moore said. “This Janesville police officer swept up this girl. It was just a heroic act, and it interested me in police work.”

Forty years later, Moore is the police chief in the city where he was born, the city where he raises his kids and the city he always has called home.

He’s a regular in the Craig High School bleachers, a member of Cargill United Methodist Church and a familiar face on the Ice Age Trail and Lake Koshkonong.

Although he is the city’s new top cop, he is one of us.

“I feel this is my community,” Moore, 52, said. “I have ownership here.”

He plans to be chief for at least five years.

A family man

Moore sat in his office Saturday with his 16-year-old daughter, Olivia.

He had some catching up to do after a long week that included a homicide investigation and two days of chief interviews. He brought his daughter with him.

The former deputy chief won’t be in the same office much longer. The chief gets the more spacious, corner office.

He and his daughter talked about how their family celebrated after he was named chief the previous night.

Moore and his wife, Karen, 51; son, Brandon, 17, and Olivia shared hugs. Olivia did a cheer. It was pretty low key. They might do something more formal later.

He had two congratulatory gifts arrive at his office Saturday—a bouquet of flowers from the Old Fourth Ward Committee members and a fruit basket from relatives.

He has pictures of Olivia in her Craig High pompom uniform and Brandon in his Craig High football uniform on his wall.

He has a watercolor painting of Destin, Fla. He packs his family in a vehicle every year and drives them there for vacation.

“It’s just a beautiful area of America,” Moore said. “We’re all pretty busy, and it gives us quality time together.”

Moore has a picture of himself in an airplane after he took his first solo flight. His son also flies. They flew to Florida together last year.

“That was a memorable father-and-son experience,” Moore said. “He is a good co-pilot. He helped me with the radios, GPS systems and the maps.”

Moore also has photos of Brandon at the Green Bay Packers training camp when Brandon was a young boy.

On the job, Moore has a serious demeanor. He wears a crisp suit and tie to work. He speaks carefully, often referring to notes.

He rises at 4 a.m. and jogs 2 miles along the Ice Age Trail. He arrives at the office at 6 a.m. and stays for about 12 hours.

Outside work, he enjoys his son’s lacrosse or football games. He watches his daughter dance at halftime of sporting events.

He might help his son pack for one of his church mission trips. Or he could be seen on a pontoon boat or waterskiing on Lake Koshkonong.

“We’re just really involved with the kids and their activities,” Moore said. “Between work and the kids’ activities, that takes care of our week.”

Hard work

Moore became a police officer when he was 20. He later started a roof-truss manufacturing firm with his brother, Todd, in 1988.

“I think our best year we had over $1.2 million in sales, and I think we had over 20 employees at times,” Moore said.

“It was an interest. I’ve always believed in working hard and developing your own future,” he said. “My first love has always been police work. This was just an additional opportunity.”

He focused on the business during the day, then worked second shift as a police officer. He also raised two young children at the time. And he was finishing college.

“I didn’t sleep much,” Moore said. “The only way it worked was with a loving and supporting wife.”

His daughter said her father has taught her a lesson about hard work.

“To this day, I don’t understand how he does it, how he can work so hard and excel in his career and not miss a moment at home,” Olivia said.

After Moore was promoted through the ranks, he realized he could become chief. Former Chief Ray Voelker had a talk with him.

“He told me, ‘David, if you were to go back to school and get your bachelor’s degree, there is no end to where your career could go,’” Moore said. “It probably was the tipping point to get me to go back to college.”

Moore eventually earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees. He still wears his class ring.

“It meant a lot to me to have my wife and children see me graduate,” Moore said.

And his family is proud of him.

“I’ve learned how hard it can be,” Olivia said. “I’m understanding of how much you have to prepare for this.”

Time of transition

When Moore became interim chief, he seized the opportunity.

He hired eight officers. He worked with law enforcement leaders in Rock County to fight heroin.

He met with leaders of the Fourth Ward and Look West neighborhoods, pledging to provide the neighborhoods with extra patrol.

He asked officers to walk every street in the neighborhoods in search of code violations.

They found about 200 violations such as and debris or abandoned vehicles in yards.

Many were fixed right away.

“If these neighborhoods are kept clean, they’re less prone to crime and disorder,” Moore said.

Moore also decided to list the department’s arrests online to help residents protect themselves.

And he created a citywide survey asking residents to tell him their opinions on the police department. The survey will go out next month and help him direct the future of the department.

Moving forward

Moore was hired to be chief because he was prepared and qualified, said Staci Nielson, chair of the city Police and Fire Commission.

No one ever said a negative word about Moore, Nielson said, and his work ethic and character are impeccable.

Neil Mahan, former police chief, also recommended Moore, Nielson said.

Mahan told the commission Moore succeeded at every task he asked him to perform.

Moore has a list of goals he wants to accomplish in the next five years.

His first priority is to keep the community safe. He believes the city will be judged on the safety of its central city neighborhoods. He will make those areas his focus.

Moore also wants to take on the ambitious challenge of reducing the department’s calls for service.

He wants to have a team identify trends from the previous year that resulted in a high number of calls.

For instance, an apartment building might generate numerous calls because tenants fight or cause problems. The team would then work to identify and solve those problems to prevent them from reoccurring.

The idea is to be proactive instead of reactive, Moore said, and the result could be fewer calls.

“What I think you’ll see is a better delivery of services,” he said.