Ella Bully-Cummings in the United States

Ella Bully-Cummings (1958-) in relation to Crime and Race

Ella Bully-Cummings (1958-) is included in the Encyclopedia of Race and Crime (1), beginning with: Ella May Bully was working in the ticket booth of a Detroit theater in the mid-1970s when she saw an unusual sight: a woman police officer patrolling Detroit’s streets. Three years later, the 19-year-old high school graduate decided to try walking the same beat; 23 years later she became only the second African American female named chief of one of the 10 largest police departments in the nation. When Bully entered the Detroit Police Department (DPD) Academy in July 1977, she faced hostility from the mostly White male officers who resented the city’s affirmative efforts to integrate the department. But she persevered, serving in every rank until, on November 3, 2003 (now Bully-Cummings), she was named interim chief of the 4,200-member DPD by Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who on December 4 of that year removed the interim from her title.

Resources

Notes and References

1. Entry about Ella Bully-Cummings (1958-) in the Encyclopedia of Race and Crime

See Also