Port Casting a Wider Net for New Police Chief

With five qualified candidates currently part of the Port Washington police force, members of the Police and Fire Commission hope they can hire a new police chief from within — but that doesn't mean they are totally banking on it.

Instead, the commission on Monday night decided to begin advertising throught the state as a means to make sure it find the most qualified person.

"I’d love to be able to say that we’ve got somebody from within here, but I also want everybody to understand that we’ve got the best candidate available for the city, and I think that’s what the citzens are going to demand," said Rick Nelson, commission chairman. "If we can validate that that person can beat anybody else in the entire state, then I know I’m going to feel very comfortable with that choice."

Commission member Bruce Baker was the only one of the five members who didn't think it was necessary to seek additional candidates.

"What exposure I have to the force, I feel we have several qualified candidates," Baker said, echoing all the members' sentiments that they would like to see a promotion from within.

The commission voted 4-1, with Baker against the motion, to start advertising on law enforcement website and other sources throughout Wisconsin. The commission hopes to have the ad up by Aug. 1, and applications will then be due Aug. 31.

The commission first learned of current Police Chief Richard Thomas' retirement in May, when ; recently, to Dec. 31, 2011.

The commission's initial plan was to merely look within the department for a new chief, but those plans changed after consulting police chiefs from surrounding communities, according to Terry Tietyen, the vice chairman of the commission.

If the commission began reviewing the department applicants and realized it did not want to hire one of these people, Tietyen said the chief advised it may be a very negative experience for the department.

"The department’s morale would probably take forever to recover, if it ever did," he said.

On the flip side, having a larger pool of candidates would make it clear that the commission wanted the most qualified person for the job.

"Widening the search early on only gives that person more credibility," commission member Mike Mueller said.

"We’ve got the entire community looking at us … that want to make sure we do the right thing," Nelson said.

Qualifications for the position include, but are not limited to:

• Hold a bachelor's degree in business, public administration, criminal justice or related field;
• Have additional training from known law enforcement institution;
• A minimum of 10 years of law enforcement experience, with five of those years include some sort of commanding position;
• Must become a Port Washington resident within one year of starting the position.

The commission will also place an emphasis on making sure the candidate will continue to build on some of the department's programs, such as

"Just because somebody meets these minuim qualifications, doesn’t make him a police chief," Nelson said.

The commission also set in place a timeline for the hiring process, though the dates can change if members feel they need more time.

“All these dates that I put out were just some benchmarks," Nelson said, adding that the deadlines would help maintain a certain level of progress to hire a new chief in time.

“The impact this can have on the community is substantial and not to rush through it (is important)," Baker said.

The commission has put together a panel of five police chiefs that will review the applications submitted by Aug. 31. Strong candidates will then submit follow up essay question answers by the end of September; continuing candidates from that pool will undergo assessments in October and personal interviews in November.

The commission hopes to announce a decision at its Dec. 12 meeting.