Bellingham says next police chief will be an ‘experienced law-enforcement professional’
Four finalists have been named in the search for the new chief of the Bellingham Police Department, Mayor Seth Fleetwood said Wednesday, May 12.
Those candidates include a woman and a current member of the Bellingham Police command staff, according to a release and statement on the city’s website posted Wednesday.
“Our next police chief will be an experienced law-enforcement professional, who has demonstrated success building community relationships and is ready to lead changes our community desires in policing, such as further developing non-enforcement responses, expanding behavioral health programs, identifying and eliminating structural and institutional racism, and building on the department’s already strong culture of compassion, integrity and professionalism,” Fleetwood said in a statement.
Each of the four finalists have more than two decades of experience each, according to the city:
▪ Capt. Kristina Jones of the Portland (Ore.) Police Bureau, where she oversees the community services division.
▪ First Deputy Director Matthew Davis of the Illinois State Police. Davis also has a law degree from Saint Louis University.
▪ Capt. Nick Almquist of the Snoqualmie Police Department.
▪ Deputy Police Chief Don Almer of the Bellingham Police Department.
“Those candidates will be interviewed with internal and external stakeholders,” Fleetwood said at a City Council meeting Monday, May 10.
A final interview process begins Monday, May 17, city spokeswoman Janice Keller told The Bellingham Herald in an email.
That includes initial interview panels, a virtual meeting with labor representatives who have members in the Police Department, a virtual meeting with police department staff, a virtual meeting with key community members and final interviews.
A decision is expected quickly, Fleetwood told the City Council.
One of them will replace Chief David Doll, who retired in January after 40 years with the department. Deputy Chief Flo Simon was named interim chief, but she also plans to retire in 2021.
Simon, who has been deputy chief since 2008, was Bellingham’s second Black officer when she was hired in 1989 after graduating from Western Washington University.
Bellingham’s police chief earns $166,000 a year and is part of the city’s management team, reporting to Fleetwood.
The police chief will have a budget of $70.4 million for 2021-2022 and will supervise 188.4 “full-time equivalent” employees, including office staff, 9-1-1 dispatchers and 122 commissioned officers.
“Like so many communities across the nation, we see the years ahead as transformational for law enforcement and public safety,” Fleetwood said.
This story was originally published May 13, 2021 at 10:21 AM.
