Richmond police Maj. Odetta Johnson
Richmond’s police chief is working to build his department’s relationship with the city’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community, a population that sometimes can be mistrustful of police officers.
Chief Ray Tarasovic appointed Maj. Odetta Johnson to serve as the Richmond Police Department’s liaison to the LGBT community, marking the first time the department has assigned an officer to that role.
Tarasovic added that responsibility to Johnson’s other duties after LGBT leaders approached the chief in the spring and asked him to designate an officer to be their link.
Tarasovic said the group that approached him did not have specific concerns or complaints about interactions between the police and the LGBT community, but the chief noted that its members sometimes fear they will become victims of violence because of their sexual identities.
“There is a concern, as there is a national concern, that folks don’t get targeted for who they are, and we share that concern,” Tarasovic said.
On Nov. 10, a 22-year-old transgender person was fatally shot in a South Richmond alley, and although some in the LGBT community initially speculated that the shooting was a hate crime, Tarasovic said there is no direct evidence of that.
“In many cases, motive is difficult to establish,” Tarasovic said. “Motive often doesn’t ever get established.”
“An arrest has not been made in that case,” he added. “We are investigating it vigorously.”
The police initially identified the victim of that killing as a man, Rodney S. White Jr.
But one of the victim’s cousins said at a recent candlelight vigil that White had begun to identify as a woman in recent years and was planning to “have surgery done and complete the changeover to a woman.”
Highlighting the sensitivities surrounding issues of gender identity, one advocate of the LGBT community, Roland Winston, said it is imperative that White be referred to as “she” instead of “he” because White was transitioning into a woman, though the victim had not acquired the physical characteristics of a woman.
Winston helped organize the eighth Transgender Day of Remembrance on Nov. 20 in downtown Richmond. The event was held to remember transgender individuals who lost their lives violently.
Tarasovic attended the event with Johnson and read a joint proclamation by the City Council and Mayor Dwight C. Jones designating that day as “Richmond Transgender Day of Remembrance.”
Tarasovic and Johnson also attended PrideFest 2013 in September at Kanawha Plaza. The Police Department had a booth at the event for officers to talk about crime prevention and recruiting.
At the Day of Remembrance ceremony in November, attendees commemorated White’s life and the life of a transgender person who committed suicide. They also remembered DaShad Laquinn “Sage” Smith, who disappeared from Charlottesville one year earlier, on Nov. 20, 2012, and has not been found. Police said Smith is a young man who often dressed as a woman.
Last December, authorities searched a Henrico County landfill for clues in their search for Smith.
Bill Harrison, executive director of the Richmond Gay Community Foundation, praised Tarasovic for taking the initiative to strengthen its relationship with the LGBT community.
Harrison said some gays who are victims of domestic violence are reluctant to call the police, fearing that officers will treat them poorly. He said he is not aware of any specific examples of bad interactions with police in Richmond.
“We know there are people in our community who would be hesitant to call police because of who they are,” Harrison said.
In addition to her new role, Johnson’s duties include overseeing day-to-day operations for the chief’s office, managing the budget, handling complaints and directing department policy.
Johnson said the department is seeking to be proactive by making sure police are approachable to members of the LGBT community.
