Dan Oates, ex-Greenlawn man, leads Aurora shooting probe

The man in charge of investigating one of the deadliest mass shootings in the nation's history is a former NYPD deputy chief who lived in Greenlawn and still enjoys visiting friends on Long Island, his parents said.

Daniel J. Oates, 57, Aurora, Colo., police chief, also is a lawyer and a senior fellow at Long Island University's Homeland Security Management Institute, where he teaches an online course on constitutional law. From 1997 to 2001, he had been commanding officer of the NYPD's Intelligence Division.

Those who know Oates say he has what it takes to manage a chaotic and large-scale probe that involves multiple agencies. He's organized. He's thorough. And, they said, he is unflappable under pressure.

At a news conference Friday night, Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper called the police chief's leadership "unbelievable" in quickly arresting the suspect and moving the investigation forward. "I think you guys should all give Chief Oates a hand," he told the crowd.

Oates, in his blue uniform and cap, bowed his head and raised his hand to acknowledge the crowd's applause.

"There is no one better to lead this investigation than Dan," said Steven Kuhr, executive deputy commissioner of New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services and a former student of Oates. "I think it has to do with his temperament and his leadership."

When Oates' father, John Oates, 89, heard the news about the shootings at the "Dark Knight Rises" midnight screening in Aurora Friday morning, he and his wife, Louise Oates, 86, both of Allendale, N.J., refrained from calling their son.

The couple received an email from their daughter-in-law, letting them know that the Oates' teenage daughters are OK.

After Oates' 21 years with the NYPD and four years as police chief of Ann Arbor, Mich., the mass shooting is the biggest case to come his way, his father said.

"He may have been involved in one or two life-or-death situations, but nothing like this," said John Oates.

Oates was born in New Jersey. He is the middle of five children. He graduated from Bucknell University in Pennsylvania with an English degree and was a reporter for a year or two, covering courts, his parents said.

Oates lived in Greenlawn until the summer of 2001 when he moved to Michigan, his parents said.

Vincent Henry, 55, director at LIU's homeland institute, who recruited Oates to teach, heard about the shootings Friday morning and turned to his wife.

"The people of Aurora are lucky to have Dan as their police chief," he told his wife. "He can juggle as many balls as you throw at him."