MINT HILL, NC – In this week’s “Behind the Lines,” Lt. B. Gilman introduces Crime Analyst John White.
Crime Analyst John White’s passion for criminal justice began on a shopping trip to Belk at the age of 15. While his mother was shopping, John overheard a Concord police officer working loss prevention say if he had a vehicle, he could have chased a subject for shoplifting. In possession of his learner’s permit, John offered the officer a ride.
The two gave chase towards Kannapolis, where police had stopped the suspect on a bicycle. From that day on, John was hooked on combating crime. Unable to wait until 18, John joined the Army National Guard at just 17.
Analyst White began working at the Mint Hill Police Department in December of 2019 after retiring from the North Carolina Department of Public Safety, where he was assigned to the State Bureau of Investigations as a Special Agent for 19 years. “John built relationships with the department as an SBI agent shortly after we opened in 2003,” said Lt. Gilman. “He would work within the walls of MHPD much of his time and quickly became an asset to the agency with investigations.”
John currently serves the Town of Mint Hill with crime analysis as well as traffic enforcement analysis and response. John’s work is integral to the new “Stratified Policing” model adopted by the department in January. Much of his time is spent on research to put personnel and resources in place to combat these issues. John also serves the department as a Firearm Instructor and has been certified for nearly 25 years.
Analyst White’s work has been beneficial to the agency’s new structure combating crime. “Communication has been better,” said Major Hall, “and the officers are placing ownership and vested interest on themselves, combating quality of life issues for the community as well as the analysis of these efforts. I have seen an increase in community policing efforts that our officers are thriving on and hope to see more citizen involvement.”
Although he spends much of his time committed to his work, John still finds time for hobbies. John is a certified scuba diver and rescue diver. Family is most important to John who is a father to two daughters and a son. John says he is satisfied as a father if they do their very best with whatever they do and thinks his kid’s education is very important and always wants his kids to be better than him.
