The highest-ranking female officer in the Atlanta Police Department says she has made it a point during her career to do anything men could do — and do it better.
From the very beginning, Prenzinna Spann didn’t want to be that female cadet stuck in the remedial program for physical fitness, she said. So she made sure she didn’t just match her male counterparts, but beat them in the fitness test.
Now a deputy chief, Spann said that while the women and men start off as equals, there is a stigma within the department that the women will eventually stay in the office and work administrative assignments that won’t put them in harm’s way.
“I’m always big on redirecting that narrative,” said the 44-year-old native of Washington D.C., who joined APD in 2001. “It’s like a competition within (yourself) that you have to make sure that you are not settling.”
To accomplish that, Spann said she made sure she wasn’t shying away from horrific scenes, was always going after perpetrators when they ran and kept reminding her superiors that she was just as qualified as her male colleagues when it came to promotions.
One of her favorite assignments was working in the special victims unit, especially on child exploitation cases, she said. She enjoyed being able to remove predators from victims’ lives and watch the children grow and blossom after such traumatic experiences.
“I think the most rewarding part about it is ... just knowing that there is a light at the end of the tunnel and being able to move a monster out of somebody’s life,” she said.
Spann now works as the commander of the department’s professional development division, where she oversees several units, including the training academy and the Atlanta Police Leadership Institute.
To other women in law enforcement or those thinking of joining the force, Spann said she encourages them to put themselves to the test and use their natural abilities to be empathetic and good listeners to advance their careers.
“If this job is for you, and this is something that you desire to do, the sky’s the limit,” said Spann, who earned her degree from Talladega College in biology. “Your destiny is up to you ... my philosophy would be to put yourself to the test and go all the way.”
For her, Women’s History Month is a chance to recognize and support the unsung heroes whose stories aren’t often told and to hopefully inspire the up-and-coming women in law enforcement.
“Somebody, by listening to (these stories), somebody’s getting that extra push ... (to) go that extra mile or push themselves to go a step forward,” she said.
Spann said she is constantly reminding herself that as one of the four deputy chiefs and just two ranks below chief, she is someone’s role model. She recognizes that the women who came before her paved the way for her and the other 331 female APD officers.
APD has had eight female deputy chiefs, with the first — Beverly Harvard — being appointed in 1982. Harvard went on to be named the department’s chief in 1994, becoming the first Black female police chief of a major city.
“I know I’m standing on their shoulders, their prayers, their desires. So I just hope to always be that person that they thought would land this type of position,” she said.
