Metro official finalist for Spokane’s chief

Cathy Scott

Wednesday, April 29, 1998 | 10:15 a.m.

Metro Police Deputy Chief Paul Conner has been named a finalist for police chief of the Spokane (Wash.) Police Department.

Conner, 50, is one of six finalists, including a woman, for the top position with that department, which has 288 sworn police officers and 150 civilian employees. The city of Spokane has a population of 180,000.

The final decision will be made in a few weeks, he said. There were 26 applicants for the position, Conner said.

"Next week we're going to be going through an assessment process up there, then a decision will be made by Spokane," he said.

Conner, a 26-year veteran who has been a deputy chief since 1990, said he has always wanted to head a police force.

"Being a chief of police is something that has been one of my career goals my entire professional life," he said. "Now is the time I've decided to take a run at applying for one of those jobs... I started from the bottom and worked my way up."

A spokeswoman for the Spokane Police Department said the current chief, Terry Mangan, retires on July 20. The chief reports directly to the Spokane City Manager, according to Dorothy Webster, assistant city manager. The department has a $30 million budget.

The public in Spokane is invited to participate in a question-and-answer session with the six finalists on May 5 at the Spokane Community College, Webster said.

The other finalists are: Alan Chertok, 45, commander in Newport News, Va.; John Robertson, 47, chief of police in Orange, Calif.; Steven Tomson, 47, sheriff of Whitman County, Wash.; Joy Citta, 46, captain in Lincoln, Neb.; and Michael Aubrey, undersheriff for the Spokane County Sheriff's Office.