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Shaq will run for sheriff in 2020 — and he has a plan to heal the disconnect between police and communities by Graham Flanagan on Nov 29, 2017, 4:05 PM Former NBA superstar Shaquille O'Neal recently announced that he plans to run for sheriff in Henry County, Georgia in 2020. We asked Shaq about what he hopes to achieve with his transition to law enforcement.
Shaq recently stopped by Business Insider to talk about his collaboration with home security technology company Ring to raise awareness about how homeowners can better protect their property this holiday season. Shaq recently kicked off a campaign with Ring's CEO Jamie Siminoff around protecting holiday package deliveries - specifically as National Package Protection Day is observed on Nov. 29. Following is a transcript of the video.
Shaquille O'Neal: When I was in LA, I went through a full-fledged police academy, so I know the hard work and dedication that these guys put in to keep people safe. Me running for sheriff — I've felt, over the past couple of years, there's been a disconnect from the community and police.
So, the community that I'm in – I'm definitely gonna try to bring that back together.
[Shaq is a spokesman for the home security company Ring]
O'Neal: I've mentioned that I plan on running in 2020. I live in Henry County. There's a little town called McDonough outside of Atlanta. When I was coming up, the police were loved and respected, but you know, it's tough for both sides right now.
I would try to bring back community policing. When I was coming up, there was a cop in my neighborhood. Everybody knew him. He was a fair guy. Like, he'd catch you stealing gum and he'd tap you. "Hey, man get outta here."
You know, we needed that. Then, you'd have Mrs. Jones be like, "Hey, Officer so-and-so. The kids are down there fighting."
And then he'd go down there and break it up. So, I would definitely try to introduce that back. We are definitely more divided than ever. That's why, whenever I'm out there, I just try to ease people's tension. We need more togetherness. We need more joyfulness. That's why I always try to just make people laugh because there's a lot going on — a lot of craziness going on and you would think, in 2017, we would be much more advanced, but it seems like we're going backwards.
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