Interviews For Police Chief Candidates Begin This Week — No Internal Candidates Included
Lincoln, NE (May 24, 2021) A special panel will begin the next phase of selecting Lincoln’s new police chief this week. They’ll interview eight candidates, none of them currently employed by L-P-D.
The eight were selected by the panel and an executive search firm from the pool of applicants. The Mayor’ s office says it will have a list of finalists available next week.
A public forum will be held in June. The mayor is expected to present a final recommendation to the city council by the end of June.
The process of picking the next Chief started with a month-long public engagement process. The results were published in a report that is available for public review at lincoln.ne.gov/policechiefsearch. That site also includes the position announcement and position profile.
“After extensive outreach to the community, our efforts have given us invaluable insight into the priorities our residents have for policing and the Police Chief,” said Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird. “The broad themes we heard repeatedly include a commitment to community policing, support for our officers and the department, a focus on diversity and equity both within the force and in the community, and an unwavering dedication to transparency and accountability.”
The search committee includes the following people:
- Bob Caldwell, Executive Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer, NEBCO, Inc.
- Tracy Corr, Chairperson, Mayor’s Neighborhood Roundtable
- Marty Fehringer, former LPD Captain, Assistant Chief of UNL Police
- Romeo Guerra, Executive Director, El Centro de las Americas
- Pastor John Leonard Harris, M.Ed., Founder and President, Encouragement Unlimited, Incorporated
- Dr. Ed Mlinek, Emergency Medicine Specialist, Bryan Health
- Genelle Moore, former LPD Captain, Human Resources Specialist, Lincoln Public Schools
- Phil Tegeler, retired, Former Executive Director, The Bridge Behavioral Health
- Dr. Colette Yellow Robe, Academic Retention Specialist, UNL
The previous Police Chief, Jeff Bliemeister, resigned at the end of 2020 to take a job in the private sector. Assistant Chief Brian Jackson has been Acting Chief.
