Editorial: Search for new police chief will take time

Portales is preparing to hire a new police chief for the first time in 19 years.

It's nice to hear City Manager Tom Howell say the process may take months, that he'll select a committee to help sort through the applicants and their qualifications and that he doesn't care if the next chief comes from Portales "or Timbuktu."

Howell said he doesn't care how long it takes; he's determined to find a quality administrator with strong leadership skills for the department that employs 46.

Jeff Gill announced this week he's retiring from the position he's held since 1993. He plans to stay until Sept. 21, Howell said, so there's plenty of time to find his successor.

Portales PD has been under a spotlight the past eight months, beginning with the criminal conviction of longtime Deputy Chief Lonnie Berry for tampering with public records. Four months later, investigators hired by the City Council issued a report critical of Gill's leadership.

"(Gill's) trust and management style," the report said, "created an informal organizational structure coupled with delegation of duties (and) effectively screened the chief from the actual operation of the department."

It is a good time for a change in city police leadership.

But change for the better won't happen without planning and a careful selection process.

Howell said he doesn't intend to formally accept applications for the job for at least a week, until he's finished reviewing and refining the chief's job description. Then he will appoint a committee of five to seven people, mostly city department heads, who will help review and score applicants.

If it takes four or five months to have a new chief in place, that's fine with Howell. He won't mind interviewing five or six candidates if he has that many who are equally qualified.

While Gill had plenty of critics who are glad to see him leave, he also had a large contingent of supporters; not many can stay in a high-profile leadership position for two decades these days without a foundation of dedicated advocates.

But no matter which Gill camp you're in, both sides must realize the next chief will need character, confidence and personality — in addition to fundamental police skills — to meet the challenges that lie ahead for Portales.

Take all the time you need, Tom Howell. Selecting a new police chief is an important task.

Unsigned editorials are the opinion of the Clovis Media Inc. editorial board, which includes Publisher Ray Sullivan and Editor David Stevens.