Norwich — Police Chief Patrick Daley remarked Wednesday at a swearing-in ceremony at City Hall, amid smiling police, friends and family members, that the Norwich Police Department’s newest deputy chief, Corey Poore, is the right person for the job.

After summarizing his many positions and accomplishments, and while speaking about them in an interview with The Day after the ceremony, Daley said, “He is the right one for right now. He’s got the experience, the temperament and the job knowledge to perform admirably at the job.”

Poore, who’s been serving with the department for more than 25 years, accepted his new position during the ceremony, thanking his superiors, as well as his family and friends, before paying respect to the colleagues that he said help keep Norwich’s streets safe every day.

“In Norwich, tragedies are averted almost daily,” Poore said in a speech, after his children, Colin, 18, and Ava, 15, of Griswold pinned their father’s new badge on his uniform. “The common theme in how we survive these events is the quality of the men and women who put on their uniform.”

He replaces former Deputy Chief Christopher Ferace, who left the department to work for the Putnam Police Department last summer. The position had remained vacant while the department underwent a hiring process, while also working through budget constraints, Daley said.

“I had an open mind throughout the whole process,” Daley said. “It was a very agonizing decision, to be honest with you, because we have very capable people. But (Poore's) got a good handle on the job and he’s got the drive to succeed.”

In his former position as administrative lieutenant, Poore was charged with drafting and implementing policies and procedures for the department, while also overseeing both the Records Division and the Training and Selections Unit, among other responsibilities. His new duties will include overseeing the department’s Professional Standards and Detective divisions. In the absence of the chief, Poore will command the department.

“It’s exciting,” Poore said after the ceremony. “It’s nothing I ever expected. I was hopeful to certainly become a lieutenant and maybe a captain one day, but I never thought I would be in the top two (roles of the department).”

“I’m confident of my abilities and I know what I can do for the department and the city. So, it’s exciting,” he continued.

Born and raised in Norwich, Poore graduated from Norwich Free Academy in 1987, before going on to attend aviation schools in New Hampshire, Arizona and Virginia. He joined Norwich police in 1993, undergoing police academy training in December that year, before going on to serve in a variety of roles and positions at the department, including community police officer, Police Academy certified defensive tactics instructor, detective, sergeant, lieutenant/shift commander, administrative lieutenant and, now, deputy chief.

Poore has received numerous commendations, including the department’s highest award — the Medal of Valor — for risking his life to save a handicapped man trapped in a house fire. He also has been recognized for his part in local, state and federal investigations into regional gun and narcotics trafficking.

Poore said in his interview with The Day after Wednesday’s ceremony that he was most proud of his position within the New London County Cold Case Unit, of which he was a member for “three to four years,” overseeing “a number of local cases that hadn’t been touched.”

“It’s respect. You give it out on the street and you get it back,” Poore said, commenting on the morals and values he’s carried with him throughout his career, before detailing a story about a time he chased a man carrying a gun through the streets of Norwich. Before arresting the man, Poore tripped and dropped his own gun, watching it "skip across the pavement and land at (the man's) feet."

Poore said the man "stopped, saw that I fell, saw the gun on the ground, and then put his hands up and said, ‘You got me, Poore. You got me.'”

Later in booking, when Poore asked why the man stopped running, he told Poore, “‘It’s just respect. You’ve never done me wrong. You’ve always treated me with respect,’” Poore said, explaining he had dealt with the man on numerous other occasions. “If you give respect out on the street, you get respect.”

m.biekert@theday.com