Hodges says Mpls. should skip wide search for new police chief
Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges said she wants to avoid an external search for a new police chief and instead put Medaria Arradondo in charge of the department immediately, reiterating her support for the interim chief to succeed JaneƩ Harteau.
The mayor described a sense of urgency among constituents and officers for making changes in police leadership in a statement Hodges tweeted Tuesday night.
Hodges said she'd nominate Arradondo as chief Friday night, right after Harteau resigned.
"I might have been open to making an interim appointment and starting a lengthy process to identify an outside candidate if there weren't an ideal candidate right in front of us," Hodges wrote.
Harteau stepped down as chief nearly a week after one of her officers fatally shot Justine Ruszczyk, a south Minneapolis woman who had called 911 to report a sexual assault.
Restoring public trust in Minneapolis police, embattled by multiple high-profile shootings and excessive use-of-force claims, has been at the center of Hodges reelection campaign.
Hodges' statement Tuesday praised Arradondo as a "skilled communicator who is respected inside and outside" the police department.
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