Twenty-five candidates have submitted applications to become Columbus’ next police chief, according to Pat Mitchell the city’s human resources director.
The city began taking applications a month ago to find a successor to former police chief Tony Carleton, who resigned Nov. 12 in the wake of the police-involved shooting death of Ricky Ball, 26. State officials continue to investigate Ball’s death.
The city advertised a $72,000 to $75,000 salary range for the chief of police position. The application window closed Monday.
The Columbus City Council appointed CPD Capt. Fred Shelton interim chief during the search. Shelton has told The Dispatch he planned to apply for the permanent job.
From here, city officials will review applications and weed out those that don’t meet qualifications. Then the process will be handed over to a search committee the council created to oversee the process.
The committee will review the applicants who make it through initial review by city officials and narrow the field to a few finalists. The group will ultimately recommend finalists to the council, which will decide who to hire.
The committee will consist of Mayor Robert Smith, Mitchell, Chief Operations Officer David Armstrong, Ward 4 councilman Marty Turner, Ward 3 councilman Charlie Box and councilman-nominated citizens from each ward.
Ward 1 councilman Gene Taylor said he recommended United Christian Church Pastor Steve James for Ward 1. Ward 2 Councilman Joseph Mickens selected Kingdom Vision International Church Pastor R.J. Matthews to represent Ward 2. Ward 3 Councilman Charlie Box said he recommended Lee Roy Lollar Jr. Turner said he recommended Caesar Sherrod. Kabir Karriem recommended William Beckwith for Ward 5. Bill Gavin said he recommended Berry Hines for Ward 6. Ward 2 councilman Joseph Mickens could not be reached.
A timeline has not been established for when the committee will begin meeting. It’s unclear whether the committee’s initial meetings will be open to the public, though Smith has previously told The Dispatch after the council formed the committee that he’s not opposed to conducting open interviews once the committee reduces the field to a few finalists.
“I’m open to leaving it open to the public once we narrow it down to the top three to five,” Smith said.
Carleton is currently working with Oxford Police Department’s training division.
Alex Holloway was formerly a reporter with The Dispatch.
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