Haines sworn in as Eastpointe police chief

EASTPOINTE — Having served as interim police chief since July, Corey Haines has now been appointed permanent police chief for the city of Eastpointe.

Eastpointe City Manager Mariah Walton made the promotion Jan. 4, after the Civil Service Commission approved Haines. Haines has no shortage of experience, having previously served as both the police chief and deputy city manager of Madison Heights. He is also an attorney, admitted to the State Bar of Michigan in 2019, working in the area of family law.

His career in Madison Heights spanned more than three decades, beginning in 1992 when he came onboard as the city’s first K-9 handler. He also served in a variety of other positions with the Madison Heights Police Department — from road patrol officer and detective, to undercover agent on the Special Investigations Unit and more.

Now he’s bringing his expertise and work ethic to the Eastpointe community.

“It was a little scary starting out, coming into a department I didn’t know much about. But as I’m moving along, I’m starting to learn more about the people who work here. We have a great Police Department with a lot of great officers, and a great administrative team all throughout the city. It’s just a blessing to be here, and to work with so many great people while leading the department forward,” Haines said.

Comparing the police departments in Eastpointe and Madison Heights, he described both as medium-sized, similar in equipment and manpower. The Eastpointe Police Department currently has 44 sworn officers, which includes the chief, deputy chief and entire command structure.

The challenges facing the department are familiar to police agencies across the country, he said.

“Like a lot of departments around the U.S., we’re having issues with recruitment and retention. We’re about three officers short right now, so we’re in the hiring process,” Haines said. “We were also trying to get an officer to be the school resource officer, and it was a bit of a struggle at the beginning, but we were able to work something out with the Eastpointe Public Schools so that we can have an officer in the district. We’re also really working on our animal control officers and our animal shelter.”

He said the local shelter is quite small, with only three dog kennels available to hold strays.

“What we’re working towards is using a section of the (Department of Public Works) here in Eastpointe so we can expand our shelter space, working closely with the City Council to do that since we have a very large need, with so many dogs we encounter that need our care,” Haines said.

Haines also wants to get the community more involved.

“The department had a pretty robust neighborhood watch program prior to the time I got here, so we’re now in the process of putting that back together to see how that will shape up,” Haines said. “I’m very much into community partnerships, getting residents involved to help curb some of the crime that has been occurring in the city.”

On that note, one concerning trend has been the theft of motor vehicles, particularly those produced by Kia.

“We’ve been doing our best to keep an eye on that,” he said.

Haines is also spearheading an effort to get the Eastpointe Police Department accredited for best practices through the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police, a comprehensive process that his team successfully navigated in Madison Heights, and that he wants to accomplish again here.

“We’re starting that process now, in the hope that in a year or two we’ll be fully accredited, showing our residents that we’re using the best practices in law enforcement,” Haines said.

Walton commended Haines on his new role. She said his wealth of experience from Madison Heights will make him a strong asset for Eastpointe.

“During his brief time at the city (as the interim chief), Chief Haines has served as a strong advocate of operational needs and the department’s personnel,” Walton said via email, also noting his work thus far with the Eastpointe schools and the animal shelter. “His prior budgeting experience has allowed him to accurately identify current and future departmental needs and opportunities to enhance our service to the community. We look forward to the continued growth of the Eastpointe Police Department under Chief Haines’ direction.”

City officials did not reply by press time to inquiries regarding the particulars of Haines’ contract.