After nearly a year without having a permanent police chief, Austin has received a slew of applicants vying for the city's top law enforcement role, from top-ranking police officials from across the country to police officers from nearby cities.
The American-Statesman received the applications of the candidates through a public information request.
City Manager T.C. Broadnax, who stepped into the role last month, has said hiring a permanent police chief is one of his top priorities. Applicationsopened last monthand closed on June 10.
Interim Police Chief Robin Henderson, who's been serving in the role since September after former Chief Joseph Chacon retired, announced last week she would not be applying for the position. No one else from the Police Department's top brass applied for the position either.
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, in a post to the Austin City Council message board Tuesday said, "The City Manager, working with Mosaic Public Partners, will be narrowing the list of applicants to top candidates who, in turn, will be interviewed by several stakeholder panels. Shortly thereafter, finalists will be given the opportunity to meet with all of us and participate in a public community meet and greet event."
Here's the list of all 32 candidates. The names are in alphabetical order.
Darryl Albert: Former police chief of the Montgomery Police Department in Alabama before resigning in April, one week after he was placed on leave by the mayor, according to AL.com. Months before his suspension, a female former officer claimed Albert had discriminated against her because she would not have an affair with him.
Lindsey Alli: Sergeant for the Columbus Police Department with 16 years of law enforcement experience.
Nicholas Augustine: Assistant chief of police in the Investigative Services Bureau for the Montgomery, Maryland County Police Department.
Paco Balderrama: Police chief in Fresno, California. He was recently placed on paid leave as the city is investigating an alleged inappropriate relationship he had with another officer's wife, the Los Angeles Times reported.
DeShawn Beaufort: An inspector over the detective headquarters for the Philadelphia Police Department, where he's worked since 1996. He was a finalist for three other chief of police positions for the Miami Metro Police Department, the Kansas City Police Department in Missouri and the Baltimore County Police Department.
Blake Bennett: A police officer with the Buda Police Department.
Joseph Costa: Chief of police for the Desoto Police Department, a city south of Dallas.
Lisa Davis: Assistant police chief of the Cincinnati Police Department. She was a finalist for Police Chief of Cincinnati in 2022.
Prurince Dice: A police captain for the Deland Police Department in Florida.
Adrian Z. Diaz: Former police chief of Seattle. Diaz was removed from his post last month following allegations of misconduct toward female employees, The Seattle Times reported. During an interview on a conservative talk show on Monday, Diaz said he is gay and said the allegations against him were false.
Gabriel Dobkin: A sergeant with the Austin Police Department since July 2023. Dobkin joined the Police Department in 2015 after working for the Jacksonville sheriff's office in Florida for 12 years.
Jason Dusterhoft: A former commander for the Austin Police Department who was fired in 2018 after being accused of strangling a woman during sex. Dusterhoft sued the city and then-chief Brian Manley in 2020, claiming he was fired for whistleblowing. The case was dismissed last year in federal court, records show. Dusterhoft appealed the decision, but the dismissal was upheld by the 5th Circuit of Appeals.
Anson Evans:Former police chief for the Fort Valley Police Department in Georgia. He resigned from the position in March, about a month after local TV station WGXVA reported the district attorney requested a state agency take over homicide investigations from the Fort Valley Police Department due to issues with the investigations.
Teresa J. Ewins: Former police chief of Lincoln, Nebraska. Ewins resigned in 2023. Before moving to Lincoln, Ewins worked for over 20 years in the San Francisco Police Department, according to her resume.
Alan Fear: Commander of police operations for the Sterling Police Department in Colorado.
Steve Friend: A former special agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Friend was one of a few FBI agent's who's allegiance to the United States was questioned by bureau officials due to their conduct in Jan. 6 cases, NBC News reported. Friend testified before a U.S. House subcommittee last year after he told his bosses he would not work cases related to the Jan. 6 Capitol riot. Friend later wrote a book saying the FBI and Justice Department were exaggerating the threats of domestic terrorism, according to an Amazon summary of "True Blue: My Journey from Beat Cop to Suspended FBI Whistleblower."
Nicholas Fiore: An inspector for the New York City Police Department, where he's worked for over 19 years.
Joel Fitzgerald: Chief of police and emergency management for Denver's Regional Transportation District. He was previously the police chief of Waterloo, Iowa, and in Fort Worth. Before moving to Iowa, Fitzgerald was fired from his job in Fort Worth after a "heated discussion" he had with an Austin police sergeant in Washington, D.C., the Dallas Morning News reported.
Mark Grube: Assistant chief with the Clark County sheriff's office in Indiana.
Kevin Hall: Assistant chief of police with the Tucson Police Department. He was a finalist for the Seattle police chief position in 2022. He also was among one of three finalists for police chief of Oakland, California, who were all rejected by the city's mayor, several local outlets reported in 2023.
Andy Harvey Jr.: Former police chief for the Pharr Police Department and city manager for the city of Pharr, along the border in the Rio Grande Valley. Harvey resigned from both positions in September 2022. He was arrested a year later and accused of striking officers in the face with his fist, according to MyRGV. The charges were dismissed and he sued the officers in March.
Steven Huron: A former sergeant for the San Antonio Police Department. He retired in July 2019 and has since been working in academia teaching about policing.
Ernest Morales III: Current police chief of the Minnesota Transit Police Department and has 33 years of law enforcement experience.
Kawanski Nichols: Sergeant with the Houston Police Department.
Jeffery Norman: Police chief of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. He has worked for the department since 1996.
More:Milwaukee Police Chief Jeffrey Norman applied for chief job in Austin
Geneane Orndorff: Sergeant detective with the Kemah Police Department, a city southeast of Houston.
Brian Reyes: Patrol operations commander with the San Antonio Police Department.
Amanjeet Sandhu: A captain with the New York City Police Department.
Anthony Schembri: A former police commissioner for the Rye Police Department in New York.
Ryan Urrutia: An assistant chief deputy with the El Paso County sheriff's office. Urrutia ran for sheriff this year but lost in the Democratic primary.
Hector Villarreal: A patrol officer with the Kingsville Police Department in South Texas.
Joshua Wallace: A commander with the Chicago Police Department, where he's worked since 1999.
