Exposito Announced as New Chief, Promises to Get 'Back to Basics'

If there was any lingering confusion about why Tomás Regalado chose his old friend Miguel Exposito as Miami's new chief of police, the veteran officer quickly cleared it up at his official introduction earlier this afternoon.

Photo by Tim Elfrink

New Police Chief Miguel Exposito stands with (from left) City Manager Pete Hernandez, Mayor Tomás Regaldo, and Commisioner Marc Sarnoff.

​Flanked by the surviving members of our quickly shrinking city commission, Exposito delivered a speech that could have doubled as a Regalado campaign missive.

Exposito pledged to "get back to basics," promising to cut unnecessary programs and put more cops on the streets, especially downtown.

"We've got a lot of specialty units right now that are nice to have, but considering our budget constraints might not be necessary," Exposito said. "Our focus needs to be on basic street patrols."

Sound familiar? That's essentially the same kind of cost-hacking promise that won Regalado a term in the mayor's chair.

Exposito, who will earn $196,000 a year as Miami's top cop, pointed specifically to MPD's helicopter unit as one division that might feel the ax after he officially takes over the department next week.

"Helicopters are nice in a big city like Los Angeles, but I'm not sure we need a unit like that in Miami," Exposito said.

Click through for a video of Exposito's introduction at city hall.