15-02-2025
Slain Melvindale officer's brother, others rally around police chief amid cancer fight
Melvindale Police Chief Robert Kennaley is the type of community leader who still gets up and handles a barking dog report on his own, his staff says. No job is too small.
Now he's the one who needs help, and his department – still reeling after an officer died in the line of duty last year and with another facing scrutiny for use of force – is rallying around him.
About two weeks ago, Kennaley got an official diagnosis of squamous cell carcinoma, the police chief said while leaving a doctor's appointment with his wife on Friday.
Between Christmas and New Year's Day, he developed a sore throat, he said. Then he felt a mass. His doctor thought it might be cancer and, unfortunately, it was.
Kennaley has a large tumor, and surgery isn't an ideal option given the location, Kennaley said. He will undergo radiation and chemotherapy, and has already undergone significant preparation. It's believed they caught the cancer somewhat early. He has good days and bad days, he said. Friday was a bad day.
Kennaley gathered his staff about two weeks ago to share the news. This week, one of them started a GoFundMe fundraiser on the chief's behalf.
'They surprised me,' the chief said a bit light-heartedly, before adding: 'They didn't ask for permission, they're asking for forgiveness this time and I can't argue with them.'
Kennaley is more than just a chief who sits behind a desk, said Cpl. Mohamed Hacham, who started the GoFundMe.
Hacham was a partner to Cpl. Mohamed Said, who was fatally shot last summer while conducting a stop. Hacham said Kennaley has been the right person to lead the department in the wake of that loss and the 'backbone to everything.'
Suspect in death of Melvindale police officer Mohamed Said faces murder charge
Hacham said there's a bad apple in every profession, but Kennaley is, one could say, the best apple.
'He's not just a leader, he's a role model and he's a pillar,' he said.
Hacham told his fellow officers it is time for them to step up for their boss, he said. He said their health insurance is not good, and something needs to be done about that.
The chief said he has high deductible plan that requires $9,000 out-of-pocket, and then he'll need to cover anything insurance doesn't.
By midday Friday, the GoFundMe had raised nearly $15,000 dollars.
The chief's voice wavered with emotion as he spoke of the response. It's hard to depend on others.
He served in the U.S. Navy for 11 years and he's been a police officer since 2006. He noted that police officers are the ones who run towards a gun, not away. He stayed awake for four and a half days to arrest the suspect in his officer's death. He's been working hard to support the Said family and help them get federal grant support, he said.
'We're here just to do a job, and for one of us to be down and need support, that's a hard feeling to accept,' he said.
He must have done something right to have the community rally around him though, he said. He wanted that family atmosphere in his department.
Of the lieutenant under scrutiny for use of force, Kennaley said, 'You might have the one officer that puts the cloud over the department, but … it's not our whole department.'
Lt. Matthew Furman was recently sued for a 2024 traffic stop in which a civilian was repeatedly drive-stunned with a Taser and reported the officer struck his head into a firetruck, according to WXYZ. Furman defended his actions to the news agency ahead of the lawsuit, but he's also fought a litany of allegations in the past, been fired, and brought back by arbitration.
Michigan State Police are investigating and Furman is on paid administrative leave, the chief said, adding there is a union to contend with along with due process.
It's been undoubtedly a tough year for the small department.
Kennaley became chief in March 2024 and within the first four months had multiple train derailments, a homicide, an officer-involved shooting, and the death of Said, he said. The new year is not starting out easy either, but his staff has already been tremendously supportive.
Hi wife, Lorie, called them 'angels.'
With the recent snowfall, the agency's new ordinance officer and brother of slain officer Said, Ahmed Said, came to shovel for the chief. Another department member came as well.
Ahmed Said was slated to interview for the police academy last summer, but his brother was killed the day before the planned conversation. He and the chief hope to get him started in the academy this summer.
Ahmed Said said the chief has been continuously there for his family since his brother's death, and Lorie Kennaley has even visited with his mom and offered her support.
The chief is a father figure to the whole office, he said. Ahmed Said asked the community to give what they can, even if it's prayers.
'You can barely find people like him,' he said.
For now, Kennaley will still be found working, however. He can work from home as needed, but was stopping back to the police station Friday.
'I'm going to keep going until I can't anymore,' he said. 'I'm going to work until my body says I can't work anymore, and then I'll take the time off I need.'
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Melvindale police rally around chief amid cancer fight
