Greg Allen Obituary – Greg Allen of El Paso, Texas, Police Chief who had led the department for almost 15 years, has died at the age of 71 on Tuesday, January 17, 2022. In 2008, Allen was appointed as El Paso’s first African American police chief. “This is a tragic loss for Chief Allen’s family, and it is heartbreaking for us, his City family, as he meant so much to our organization and to our community,” said Tommy Gonzalez, the city manager. We extend our deepest condolences to his wife Roseanne and the rest of his family.
Joyce Wilson conferred the title of chief on Allen in 2008, describing him as “a chief patrolman. They all admired and loved him because he gave his all to the department, his career, and the community. I’m shocked and in disbelief. I loved him just for being himself since he was a friend of mine.
In 1978, he started working for the department, and he quickly advanced. He was inducted as a boxer and martial artist into the El Paso Boxing and Martial Arts Hall of Fame in 1995. “We lost a great leader today. El Paso mayor Oscar Leeser said in a statement that Greg Allen, the city’s police chief, “was not only a fantastic police chief, but also a fantastic son, husband, father, and friend.” Allen was raised in El Paso and went to Bel Air High School. He graduated from the University of Texas at El Paso.
The author of the best-selling book “Black Klansman,” Ron Stallworth, who was born and raised in El Paso and later served as a law enforcement officer in Colorado, Wyoming, and Utah, claims that when he joined the El Paso Police Department, it was known for treating Black officers unfairly. Knowing the history of this city and the history of the black police officers in the department, Stallworth said, “I think it should be remembered by everyone. The fact that he achieved what he did is very significant.” ” He came from where he did to become El Paso’s first Black police chief.
Before Stallworth retired and moved back to El Paso in 2017, Allen and Stallworth had never met. Despite the fact that they both lived in El Paso for the majority of their childhoods. I asked him, “Why don’t you let me write your story?” He then enquired, “Who wants to talk about me?” I noticed how interesting your past is. You are the first black police chief in El Paso. Stallworth said: “I said, “That’s a feat, that’s important to know about.” He replied, “I’d have to think about it.” Nobody is interested in me.
A city representative named Cassandra Hernandez said she wants to make sure that Allen’s family and the wider public are involved in ways to properly honor Allen for his public service. My thoughts and prayers are with his family as well as the police officers that had the honor of working with him over the course of the previous 40+ years for the city of El Paso, Hernandez continued.
She expressed her trust in Gonzalez to name a qualified interim head and take the necessary actions to find a long-term replacement. While Allen was the police chief, El Paso frequently ranked as the safest city in the nation according to FBI-submitted crime figures.
But controversy persisted throughout Allen’s presidency as well. In 2016, he called Black Lives Matter “a radical hate organization.” In an unusual move, the El Paso City Council opted to settle a lawsuit by awarding $1.2 million to a family who had said that Allen’s bad leadership and policies were to blame for the 2015 shooting of Erik Salas Sanchez. The 22-year-old man was shot and murdered by a policeman while having a mental health crisis in his parents’ home.