UPDATE: FORT MYERS, Fla. — Two finalists have removed their candidacy for the Fort Myers Police Chief role.
According to the City of Fort Myers, the candidates removed their names due to personal reasons.
Larry Boone was a finalist for a chief position in another state and decided to accept that employment offer, city officials said.
Richard Bash was the second candidate to remove his name from the search.
Reo Hatfield was added to the list of finalists for the Fort Myers Police Chief position. Hatfield has 26 years of police experience, along with veteran experience, and serves as Deputy Police Chief at the Virginia Beach Police Department.
The updated finalist list consists of the following:
External Applicants
- Gina Hawkins
- Reo Hatfield
Internal Applicants
- Jason Fields
- Victor Medico
The City of Fort Myers said there will be two public forms on Thursday to introduce the candidates in person to Fort Myers residents. These meetings will take place at Collaboratory, 2031 Jackson Street, Fort Myers, Fla. 33901, from 4 PM – 5:30 PM and 6 PM – 7:30 PM.
ORIGINAL STORY:
FORT MYERS, Fla. — The final five candidates for Fort Myers Chief of Police are preparing for in-person interviews in the coming week. City Manager Marty Lawing shared with NBC2 what the process could look like.
“We all, we set the bar pretty high for our personnel,” said Lawing.
He told NBC2 the next steps are in part to see what ideas the candidates bring from their experience to continue slashing the crime rate in a growing city.
“So then this next in-person interview would be a more intense process,” he said.
A panel of city directors, from the director of public works to Fire Chief McMillion, narrowed the list to 12 candidates, then down to five after virtual interviews.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE: List of Fort Myers Police Chief candidates narrowed to five
Speaking on the phone to NBC2, Fort Myers Citizen Police Review Board Chair Steven Brown said he wishes the board was included in more of the interview process. Continuing on to say members are asking the respective council to be part of final interviews.
Three outside candidates come with some level of chief experience — and more scrutiny.
For some of the candidates, news stations in those out-of-state cities report previous internal investigations or disagreements with city leaders.
“But you, you can’t — it’s very unusual for someone to have a, a — hold a position such as police chief and not have someone disagree with something they did or said,” said Lawing.
In a letter to the mayor and council, Interim Chief Pepitone and Deputy Chief Meyers expressed wanting to see one of the two internal candidates get the job, even though they have no prior experience as a police chief. In the letter, they cite the candidates’ know the changes that came from the 2016 Freeh report, saying “introducing an outsider at this point creates a risk of impeding the progress this agency has seen under Chief Diggs’ tenure.”
“We’ve received a lot of input from various people,” Lawing said.
When asked about the diversity of the candidates, Lawing said they’re looking for quality.
“I can say that we focus primarily on qualifications. Usually, that’s my, my experience. If you focus on qualification, the diversity will take care of itself if you’re in a location where you get diverse applicants,” he said.
On Wednesday, the candidates will meet with the panel for an in-depth interview. Then, on Thursday, they will meet one on one with council members.
People can meet the five candidates in one of two public forums on Thursday at the Collaboratory. The city hopes to choose one of them in the next few weeks.
The post Two finalists remove their names from Fort Myers Police Chief search appeared first on NBC2 News.
