St. Paul police chief search hits snag
The city of St. Paul has a problem in its search for a new police chief.
The city charter requires the hiring committee to send five qualified candidates to the mayor for consideration. Right now, there are four.
The city council is considering amending an ordinance to change the minimum qualifications for the job.
The changes would reduce the minimum administrative experience and the required size of the force where the candidate had a supervisory role.
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The minimum administrative level experience would drop from six to four years. The required number of sworn officers in the organization where the candidate had a supervisory role would be cut from 500 to 100.
The police chief job opened up in January, and current Chief Tom Smith plans to retire this spring, although an exact date has not been publicized.
Council member Dan Bostrom said he's sure there are several more qualified candidates within the department.
"Frankly, I don't know why we couldn't just reopen the process as it is. Just extend the date of applications," Bostrom said, adding he's talked with the city's human resources department about "trying to recruit within the staff in the city of St. Paul."
Bostrom says he wants the standards kept where they are.