Hubert Arturo Acevedo (born July 31, 1964) is an American police officer who is the interim chief of police of the Aurora Police Department as of December 2022. Previously, he was the

chief of police Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the b ...

of the

Houston Police Department The Houston Police Department (HPD) is the primary law enforcement agency serving the City of Houston, Texas, United States and some surrounding areas. With approximately 5,300 officers and 1,200 civilian support personnel it is the fifth-largest ...

Austin Police Department Austin Police Department (APD) is the principal law enforcement agency serving Austin, Texas. As of Fiscal Year 2022, the agency had an annual budget of $443.1 million and employed around 2,484 personnel, including approximately 1,809 officers. T ...

, and Miami Police Department. Before becoming a police chief, he was a member of the

California Highway Patrol The California Highway Patrol (CHP) is a state law enforcement agency of the U.S. state of California. The CHP has primary patrol jurisdiction over all California highways and roads and streets outside city limits, and can exercise law enforcem ...

Background and education

Acevedo was born in

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

, in 1964, immigrating to the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

at age four with his family in 1968. His father was a police officer in Havana. Acevedo grew up in El Monte,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

, becoming a naturalized citizen in 1985. He attended

Rio Hondo College Rio Hondo College is a public community college in Whittier, California. The college is named after the Rio Hondo. Founded in 1960, it mainly serves the cities of Whittier, Pico Rivera, Santa Fe Springs, El Monte, and South El Monte. Rio Hon ...

, graduating in 1986 with an associate degree in

communications Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...

. In 2005, Acevedo graduated from

University of La Verne The University of La Verne (ULV) is a private university in La Verne, California. Founded in 1891, the university is composed of the College of Arts & Sciences, College of Business & Public Management, the LaFetra College of Education, College o ...

with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

public administration Public Administration (a form of governance) or Public Policy and Administration (an academic discipline) is the implementation of public policy, administration of government establishment (public governance), management of non-profit est ...

Career

California Highway Patrol

Acevedo began his career as a field patrol

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," f ...

in East Los Angeles with the

(CHP) in 1986 after graduation from their training academy. He rose to the rank of chief with CHP in 2005. In 2008, Acevedo received a settlement of almost $1 million from CHP in connection to a harassment lawsuit. The suit alleged that he was retaliated against by CHP commissioner Dwight "Spike" Helmick after applying for the position of CHP chief. According to Acevedo's attorney, Helmick improperly shared information from a confidential investigation into sexual harassment claims against Acevedo. During the 2004 sexual harassment investigation, multiple officers stated that Acevedo, while on duty, showed them nude photographs of a fellow officer with whom he allegedly had an affair. Acevedo denied showing the pictures.

Austin Police Department

Acevedo was hired as chief of the

in 2007. Following the February 8, 2016, shooting death of unarmed 17-year-old David Joseph, Acevedo fired officer Geoffrey Freeman, citing failure to follow policy. Freeman appealed the firing, reaching a settlement in December 2016 that awarded him $35,000 and allowed him to work for other police departments. In April 2016, Acevedo was officially reprimanded and punished by the Austin City Manager for his misconduct following the shooting, with the potential to lose his job. Older "operation and judgment concerns" from August 2011 were mentioned as well. During his time in Austin, Acevedo appeared on ''

The Alex Jones Show Alexander Emerick Jones (born February 11, 1974) is an American far-right and alt-right radio show host and prominent conspiracy theorist. He hosts ''The Alex Jones Show'' from Austin, Texas, which the Genesis Communications Network broadca ...

'' to discuss policing on multiple occasions.

Houston Police Department

In November 2016, Acevedo was hired as police chief for the

(HPD), filling a vacancy created by the retirement of Charles McClelland. Acevedo is the first person of

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties forme ...

descent to lead the department. Shortly after the

indictment An indictment ( ) is a formal accusation that a person has committed a crime. In jurisdictions that use the concept of felonies, the most serious criminal offence is a felony; jurisdictions that do not use the felonies concept often use that of a ...

of Michael Bennett for shoving a security guard at

Super Bowl LI Super Bowl LI was an American football game played at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, on February 5, 2017, to determine the champion of the National Football League (NFL) for the 2016 season. The American Football Conference (AFC) champion New ...

, Acevedo gave a press conference where he called Bennett "morally corrupt." Charges against Bennett were dropped in 2019. In January 2019, HPD officers conducted the Pecan Park raid, a no-knock raid that resulted in the deaths of two homeowners (Regina Nicholas and Dennis Tuttle) and injury of five officers. The basis for the raid, that the couple were heroin dealers, later turned out to be false. Acevedo initially refused to release an audit of the Narcotics Division, which revealed widespread problems in the division. The scandal was described by ''

Houston Chronicle The ''Houston Chronicle'' is the largest daily newspaper in Houston, Texas, United States. , it is the third-largest newspaper by Sunday circulation in the United States, behind only ''The New York Times'' and the ''Los Angeles Times''. With i ...

'' reporters as "one of the worst to hit HPD in years." The veteran HPD officer, Gerald Goines, who led the raid based on false information, was initially praised by Acevedo for his courage despite a decades-long history of allegations of misconduct. In June 2020, Nicholas’ brother, John, penned a ''Houston Chronicle'' editorial titled, “What about Harding Street raid? Acevedo,

Turner Turner may refer to: People and fictional characters *Turner (surname), a common surname, including a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Turner (given name), a list of people with the given name *One who uses a lathe for turni ...

give soundbites on police brutality but stay silent about my sister’s death.” Acevedo received national attention for his public statements in support of meaningful reform in the wake of the

murder of George Floyd On , George Floyd, a 46-year-old black man, was murdered in the U.S. city of Minneapolis by Derek Chauvin, a 44-year-old white police officer. Floyd had been arrested on suspicion of using a counterfeit $20 bill. Chauvin knelt on Floyd's ...

, paired with significant criticisms for a lack of action locally to reduce police violence and increase transparency. In the six weeks leading up to George Floyd's murder, HPD officers shot and killed six people. Despite widespread calls from citizens and local politicians to release body-worn camera footage, Acevedo refused, prompting calls for stronger police oversight in Houston. During the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

, murders rose significantly in Houston, as in many other cities. A ''Houston Chronicle'' investigation and internal audit found that by 2019, HPD's rate of solving homicides lagged far behind those of many other major cities as well as the department's own clearance rates before Acevedo's tenure. Acevedo was a vocal critic of local bail reform efforts, claiming that misdemeanor bail reform was a factor in rising violent crime, a claim that was contested by local politicians and criminal justice experts.

Miami Police Department

In March 2021, Acevedo announced that he would leave the HPD to become chief of police of the Miami Police Department. Francis X. Suarez, the mayor of Miami, compared the hiring to "getting the

Tom Brady Thomas Edward Patrick Brady Jr. (born August 3, 1977) is an American football quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the National Football League (NFL). He spent his first 20 seasons with the New England Patriots organization, with which ...

or the Michael Jordan of police chiefs." Acevedo was sworn into the position in Miami on April 5, 2021. In June 2021, Acevedo posed for a photo with Gabriel Garcia, a leader within the extremist right-wing group the Proud Boys. Acevedo claimed he wasn't aware of Garcia's background when he posed for the picture. Acevedo said that he went to reform policing in Miami, and referred to a "Cuban mafia" that controlled the city, which ignited a feud with the Miami City Commission. On October 12, 2021, Acevedo was suspended by City Manager Art Noriega. "Relationships between employers and employees come down to fit and leadership style and unfortunately, Chief Acevedo is not the right fit for this organization," Noriega elaborated. He was fired on October 14, 2021.

Aurora Police Department

On November 15, 2022, the city of

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

announced that they would appoint Acevedo as interim chief of the Aurora Police Department.

Political views

In January 2020, Acevedo described himself as a registered

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

during his time in California, but a "lifelong

RINO Rino may refer to: * Rino (given name) * Republican In Name Only, a pejorative term for U.S. Republicans considered to be insufficiently conservative * Rino, a singer-songwriter who performs under CooRie * RiNo, the River North Art District north ...

," or "Republican In Name Only," usually a pejorative reference to iconoclastic or otherwise non-conservative views. In the same interview, he addressed his outspokenness on gun violence and reiterated his support for the

Violence Against Women Act The Violence Against Women Act of 1994 (VAWA) is a United States federal law (Title IV of the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, ) signed by President Bill Clinton on September 13, 1994. The Act provided $1.6 billion toward investi ...

and openness to

decriminalization Decriminalization or decriminalisation is the reclassification in law relating to certain acts or aspects of such to the effect that they are no longer considered a crime, including the removal of criminal penalties in relation to them. This reform ...

of some drugs. During the wake of the

, Acevedo acknowledged that policing in the United States has had a "disparate treatment and impact on disenfranchised communities — especially communities of color and poor communities," but resisted calls to defund the police. During the subsequent protests in Houston, Acevedo was seen in a video telling protesters "pay close attention because these little white guys with their skateboards are the ones who are starting all the shit." He later doubled down on those comments during a news conference, saying, "We’re seeing that there are people, who are not people of color, who are coming into this city and other cities to actually start agitating and actually engaging in violence." The President of the Houston Fraternal Order of Police criticized the remark, and local news outlet KPRC claimed to fail to substantiate Acevedo's claims noting that the group of arrested people was racially diverse and from the Houston area. Acevedo appeared in a video shown on the opening night of the

2020 Democratic National Convention The 2020 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention that was held from August 17 to 20, 2020, at the Wisconsin Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and virtually across the United States. At the convention, delegates of ...

, which also featured Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden, activist Jamira Burley, activist Gwen Carr, NAACP President

Derrick Johnson Derrick O’Hara Johnson (born November 22, 1982) is a former American football linebacker. He played college football at the University of Texas at Austin, where he earned consensus All-American honors twice. He was drafted by the Kansas Cit ...

, and

Chicago Mayor The mayor of Chicago is the chief executive of city government in Chicago, Illinois, the third-largest city in the United States. The mayor is responsible for the administration and management of various city departments, submits proposals and ...

Lori Lightfoot Lori Elaine Lightfoot (born August 4, 1962) is an American attorney and politician serving since 2019 as the 56th mayor of Chicago. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before becoming mayor, Lightfoot worked in private legal practice as ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Acevedo, Art Houston Police Department chiefs Chiefs of the Miami Police Department California Highway Patrol Living people People from El Monte, California University of La Verne alumni 1964 births Naturalized citizens of the United States Cuban emigrants to the United States Hispanic and Latino American people