Welcome to Greensboro, Ken Miller.

The 25-year police veteran and former senior deputy chief of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department was hired as Greensboro police chief in September with hopes of providing some stability to a police department mired in controversy for nearly five years.

But Miller’s move from Charlotte and its big-city problems to the quieter environs of Greensboro has been anything but smooth.

Miller’s mere presence seems to have calmed a department still reeling from the controversial resignation of Chief David Wray in 2006, which eventually led to the controversial resignation of City Manager Mitchell Johnson three years later.

At the least, Miller has a polished demeanor when addressing the media, the public, and the city council. That’s a stark contrast to his predecessor, Tim Bellamy, who was hired on a permanent basis after serving as interim chief following Wray’s resignation.

While Miller has met with members of the Greensboro community to hear their concerns, his true on-the-job introduction was in response to a tragic event.

In October, police discovered the bodies of Marquise Steens and his 7-year-old son Malique shot to death in their Greensboro home. Three days later, two suspects —32-year-old Arshaq Allah and 33-year-old Cedric Cunningham — were arrested after a woman reported a sexual assault soon after the murders took place. Police connected evidence in the assault crime to the Steens’ murders, enabling them to pinpoint suspects.

Even a hardened police veteran like Miller had trouble explaining why the suspects would turn a gun on a 7-year-old child.

“This isn’t the first time in my career I’ve seen a child murdered,” Miller said during the press conference announcing the arrests. “I just don’t know what brings a person to do that.”

Miller’s leadership in the wake of the tragic crime impressed local media.

“Police took extraordinary action in response to this outrage. They said all the right things: that the crime was intolerable, and that they would not quit until they solved it,” wrote Greensboro News &Record columnist Doug Clark. “Maybe this marks a new day in law enforcement in Greensboro.”

But a few days later, an early-morning shooting occurred across the street from a downtown nightclub, wounding four people. The gunman also was wounded by a responding police officer.

Less than 24 hours after that incident, another man was arrested after police say he pulled a gun outside another downtown nightclub.

The thought of violence marring Greensboro’s thriving downtown nightlife concerned community leaders and city council members.

On Nov. 10, council member Zack Matheny, whose district includes downtown, announced a new downtown safety plan. The highlights were an increase in fines for loitering, a $5 parking fee for city garages, and, the most controversial element, an 11 p.m. curfew for anyone younger than 18.

Miller found himself before the City Council at a November meeting as members tried to balance downtown safety with new restrictions that could possibly turn citizens away from downtown.

Miller told council members he was “good” with the ordinance revisions, but he also cautioned that he was unsure of their effectiveness.

Since the stiffer penalties would affect only downtown, some members worried that undesirables might move their unruly behavior to other areas.

Miller said he didn’t know. “I don’t have the information or the data to suggest that a higher penalty is something that someone who may or may not be intoxicated is thinking about when they act,” he said.

As for the curfew, Miller noted that Charlotte had a curfew for youth under the age of 16. But Miller said the curfew was most effective in preventing “teen victimization,” while some believed the Greensboro curfew targeted teens who loitered downtown.

In the end, the council passed three revisions — the curfew, along with stiffer penalties for both loitering outside establishments that serve alcohol and urinating in public.

The curfew, however, contained a one-year sunset provision, allowing Miller and his force to gauge its effectiveness. Only once did Miller indicate any frustration with the council, during the debate over whether the ordinances should apply only to downtown or citywide.

“I am comfortable with the downtown provision, but I am not comfortable with the process we used to get there,” Miller said. “This is moving very quickly.”

Sam A. Hieb is a contributor to Carolina Journal.