Boise PD Search: Boise Mayor Continues Lack of Leadership

Boise is looking for a new police chief. The current chief, Ron Winegar, will retire in a few months, giving Boise Mayor Lauren McLean a chance at redemption. It has been well-documented how bad her first hire was as the department struggles to recover.

Before he was asked to leave, the last chief was not an Idahoan. He was from liberal Portland, Oregon. His hiring resulted in massive turnover within the Boise Police Department, including most of the command structure. Several officers have sued the city due to allegations of abuse and mismanagement.

Boise Mayor Lauren McLean was reelected despite her poor morale and incompetent leadership. The mayor had an opportunity to restore public trust by considering a member of the Boise Police Department.

Remember how she spent almost a million dollars investigating baseless allegations of racism within the department? Who could forget her press conference where she urged officers to leave if they were racist? She showed a severe lack of presumption of innocence.

There appears to be a lack of trust between the mayor and the police. Why hasn't the mayor insisted on interviewing someone from within Boise PD? Her actions suggest no current LOCAL candidates are available to at least interview. We'll continue on that train of thought expanding the applicants to all Idaho Law Enforcement? So the best Idaho's capital city can do are candidates from out of state?

Let's look at the three finalists for the Boise Police Chief position courtesy of City of Boise News Release:

Jeffrey Bert currently serves as Chief of Police in Tomball, Texas. During his time in Tomball, Bert also served as Interim Assistant City Manager. Prior to that, Chief Bert served in several leadership roles in the Los Angeles Police Department.

Chris Dennison is the Assistant Chief of Police for the Tucson Police Department, leading Central Investigations, Counter Narcotics Alliance, and Forensics. Dennison has been with the Tucson Police Department for twenty years, starting as an officer in 2004 and progressing through the ranks.

Tom Worthy is the Chief of Police in The Dalles, Oregon. Worthy's experience includes over a decade with the Oregon State Police in increasingly elevated command positions and fifteen years as a trooper and patrol sergeant.

We invite all three candidates to join us for an on-air interview and questions from the community. Unfortunately, the city will only allow the candidates to answer prearranged questions during a gathering at the Boise Depot from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, July 18th.