NORFOLK, Va. - On Tuesday, the City of Norfolk received public input from residents on what attributes and qualities residents want to see in the next police chief.
This comes after the city announced several of these town hall meetings would be taking place following the sudden resignation of former Chief of Police, Larry Boone.
While City Manager Chip Filer said the city is not ruling out internal candidates, he has hired Morris and McDaniel Management Consultants, out of Alexandria, to widen the candidate pool and assist in the nationwide search.
One of the biggest questions: will the new police chief come internally or from another city or state?
"I don’t think we should go outside of the area," one resident said. "I believe Chief Boone was effective because he came up through the ranks. You bring somebody from outside, they’re going to spend the first couple of years trying to get to know people."
Filer said he’s received mixed reviews on this.
"What do we think about an outside chief versus someone who may be in the department and promoting internally? That’s been one of the more controversial areas," Filer told News 3's Leondra Head.
Some residents want to see more crime prevention.
"The challenge is we do have an increase in crime in our city. Personally, we had somebody come in our backyard and tried to open our backdoor," another resident said.
Whoever gets the job will be faced with 249 vacancies in the Norfolk police department.
"We’ve heard loud and clear about a new chief who will motivate and improve the morale, make sure we’re recruiting and retaining the best officers we can," Filer said.
The application for a new police chief will be open for 30 days. Filer says he and the search firm will narrow it down to around eight candidates. Then there will be second-round interviews which will be narrowed down to around three candidates.
"What I’m looking for is a police chief that can be aggressive, tough, strategic. I need someone who can really resonate with the community," Filer said.
Filer said in the last six weeks, he’s met with civic leagues, the police union and religious leaders to get their feedback on what they want to see in the next police chief.
News 3 reporter Penny Kmitt spoke with people who live and work in Norfolk ahead of the forum. Some community members say they're looking for a chief similar to Boone, while others say they're hoping for something different.
"I think any police chief who has integrity, who loves this city, and who has the resources from city council and the backing from city council can be successful," said Perez Gatling, a resident of Norfolk.
Abbey Hayes, who works in downtown Norfolk, the site of several instances of recent gun violence, says she's looking for a chief who fixes violence at its core.
"We have to fix the problem from the inside in," she said. "So implementing programs inside schools, awareness, and not being afraid to go into these communities and serve."
City Manager Filer says the public forum will help Morris and McDaniel Management Consultants make an accurate job description for the role that reflects the community's concerns.
If you cannot attend Tuesday's public forum but would like to comment on Norfolk's future police chief, you can do so here.
The city plans to have a final decision by early December.
If you would like to apply for one of the many vacant police officer positions in Norfolk, click here.
