Laurel names new police chief

Friday, March 31, 2006

David Crawford, Laurel’s acting police chief since former Chief David Moore accepted a job in upstate New York Feb. 9, has been named to the post permanently.

Moore, meanwhile, recovering from a possible heart attack, was expected to possibly be discharged from a Baltimore hospital Thursday and was in ‘‘fantastic spirits,” according to the Rochester, N.Y., Democrat and Chronicle.

Moore, whose last day with Laurel was March 24, was scheduled to start as chief in Rochester Monday.

The Laurel City Council confirmed Crawford, a 29-year law enforcement veteran, as chief on Monday. The former chief of police in District Heights, he became the deputy chief in Laurel last November.

‘‘He has an air about him that he’s in charge and he knows what he’s doing,” newly elected Council President Frederick Smalls said of Crawford. ‘‘There’s a confidence that I see in him that has been very comforting for me.”

It remained unclear Thursday whether Moore had experienced a heart attack. City police spokesman Jim Collins referred inquires on Moore’s condition to the city of Rochester. Officials there were not immediately available for comment Thursday afternoon.

Moore, 59, was taken by ambulance to Union Memorial Hospital in Baltimore Tuesday night after experiencing chest pains and discomfort while movers were at his Laurel house that afternoon. The former chief was not doing any lifting himself, Collins has said.

Moore underwent a cardiac catheterization to diagnose the problem, according to Rochester Mayor Robert Duffy’s office. A spokesman for the mayor has said the city will allow Moore to determine when he will start his new job.

Crawford, 55, of Greenbelt, spent two decades with the Prince George’s County Police Department and also worked in Baltimore City.

Lt. Richard McLaughlin, Laurel’s acting deputy chief since Moore accepted the Rochester job, has also been named to that position permanently.