Calvin Ross

{{Short description|American police chief (born January 9, 1949)}}

{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2023}}

Calvin Ross (born January 9, 1949) is an American former law enforcement officer who served as Chief of Police of the City of Miami from 1991 to 1994,{{Cite web|url=https://www.local10.com/news/2014/12/15/list-of-miami-police-chiefs-since-1921/|title=List of Miami police chiefs since 1921|date=December 15, 2014|website=WPLG}} then served as Secretary of Juvenile Justice of Florida, overseeing juvenile justice programs, and finally served as police chief of Florida A&M University from 2001 to 2012. As the maternal uncle of Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, elements of his career received attention in connection with their influence on then-Judge Jackson in the process leading up to her nomination to the United States Supreme Court.{{Cite news |last1=Mazzei |first1=Patricia |last2=Savage |first2=Charlie |date=January 30, 2022 |title=For Ketanji Brown Jackson, View of Criminal Justice Was Shaped by Family |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/30/us/politics/supreme-court-ketanji-brown-jackson.html |url-status=live |access-date=February 1, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220201204008/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/30/us/politics/supreme-court-ketanji-brown-jackson.html |archive-date=February 1, 2022}}

Early life and education

Born in Overtown, Ross grew up in Liberty City, two of the poorest areas in Miami.{{cite news|url=https://www.tampabay.com/archive/1994/07/08/juvenile-justice-chief-credits-dad-s-tough-love/ |title=Juvenile Justice chief credits dad's tough love|work=Tampa Bay Times|first1=David|last1=Barstow|date=July 8, 1994}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fl-xpm-1994-07-07-9407070035-story.html |title=Miami Police Chief|first1=Diane|last1=Hirth|first2=Nancy|last2=San Martin|date=July 7, 1994|website=Sun Sentinel}} He graduated from Biscayne College in Miami with a degree in criminal justice.

Career

Ross worked for the Miami police department for 23 years, beginning as a patrolman and ultimately being named police chief in 1991.

In 1992, Governor Lawton Chiles appointed Ross to a state panel on contraband forfeiture practices."[https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-orlando-sentinel-governor-read-senti/125869473/ Governor read Sentinel report, appointed panel]", The Orlando Sentinel (August 24, 1992), p. 5. Ross was the only ethnic minority appointed to serve on the panel, which led to a protest from the NAACP. The governor responded by appointing two Hispanic members, but this did not alleviate dissatisfaction with the panel, given the disproportionate number of African-Americans in the juvenile justice system.Bob Vogel, Fighting to Win (Turner, 2001), p. 152, {{ISBN|1563116278}}.

In 1994, Governor Chiles named Ross "to lead a new state agency in charge of juvenile justice programs, everything from prevention and boot camps to long-term lockup". The administration noted that in appointing Ross, Governor Chiles "wanted to signal a tougher approach to juvenile crime by selecting a career police officer".

Ross later served for 11 years as police chief at Florida A&M University.{{Cite web|url=http://www.sfltimes.com/uncategorized/florida-am-police-chief-calvin-ross-retires|title=Florida A&M police chief Calvin Ross retires|first=Robert|last=Beatty|date=April 4, 2012}}

Personal life

Ross married a native Panamanian, with whom he had four children. He is a born-again Christian.

References