DETROIT FREE PRESS ARTICLE - SGT DAVID MALHALAB, DETROIT POLICE - RETIRED

FEW MINUTES WITH ...An ex-cop who calls it as he sees it

BY JIM SCHAEFER • FREE PRESS STAFF WRITER • March 29, 2009

If the guy in the photograph looks familiar, that's because David Malhalab has been a Detroit media gadfly for years.

Malhalab, 58, started popping up in publications like the Free Press in the 1980s, when he was one of the few Detroit street cops who would talk to reporters. Back then, and even today, talking to the media without approval could be risky to a career.

But Malhalab always talked. And e-mailed. And talked. Sometimes the media ignored him; sometimes he made it onto the airwaves and into print.

He's no longer a cop, but he still talks. Just this month he popped up with Huel Perkins on Fox 2's "Let it Rip."

You have to wonder what makes a guy like Malhalab tick.

QUESTION: David, you and I have known each other for years. ... What in the world made you decide to become the self-appointed spokesman for Detroit police?
ANSWER: Because I saw the lack of training, lack of equipment, the nepotism, the favoritism and the cronyism was having a detrimental effect on police officers and the delivery of police services to Detroit residents.

Q: You lived through a number of different chiefs. Who was your favorite?
A: None of 'em!

Q: If you had to choose one of them to be your chief today, which would it be?
A: None of 'em!

Q: If you had to.
A: If I had to? (Laughs.) Probably Chief Hart.

Q: Really? The guy who stole $2.6 million from the secret service fund? Had money fall from the ceiling of his home? Went to federal prison?
A: In terms of being a police officer, not being hurt by a chief, William Hart was probably our better chief. ... I'm not condoning what he did.

Q: You ever get any grief from coworkers, family or friends about talking so much? Do they ever say, 'David, just give it up!' "
A: I've had some criticism. "Oh, you're on TV too much." ... All I say is, "I'll give you the reporters' phone numbers. ... You tell 'em what you believe to be the truth, what you see is going on."

Q: Will you ever shut up?
A: (Laughs.) When I'm finally cremated, I think you may have heard the last from me.

Q: What else should I ask?
A: I'm single. Looking for a fun, enjoyable woman that wasn't astonished at my appearance on "Let it Rip."

Q: You looked fine.
A: God, I looked like a big head with hair!

Contact JIM SCHAEFER at 313-223-4542 or jschaefer@freepress.com.



Hopefortoday wrote:
Speak out with the truth, and your dept will turn against you. I applaud Mr. Malhalab.03/29/2009 9:59:36 a.m. EDTSpeak out with the truth, and your dept will turn against you. I applaud Mr. Malhalab. Hopefortoday

1wings wrote:
Call it like it is, The Detroit police department cant do much , with all the dirty mayors the city has had03/29/2009 6:53:16 a.m. EDTCall it like it is, The Detroit police department cant do much , with all the dirty mayors the city has had 1wings

EDW22 wrote:
I knew Dave Malhalab over 30 years ago when he was my boss at an ice rink. I thought he was an oddball then but looking back he was he one of the better people I worked plus one of the few that had the guts to speak out on issues when he was on the police force. He was so honest pointing out the problems in the department-he was a constant pain to Coleman Young. I'm grateful for that.03/29/2009 3:24:30 a.m. EDTI knew Dave Malhalab over 30 years ago when he was my boss at an ice rink. I thought he was an oddball then but looking back he was he one of the better people I worked plus one of the few that had the guts to speak out on issues when he was on the police force. He was so honest pointing out the problems in the department-he was a constant pain to Coleman Young. I'm grateful for that. EDW22