Friday, March 11, 2005 | 10:03 a.m.
As Henderson launched its national search this week for the seventh chief in the city's history, law enforcement officials said they expect the job will attract dozens of experienced candidates, many already looking to retire in Nevada.
Police Chief Michael Mayberry will retire April 4, and city officials are counting on filling the post by July 1.
Other cities in the region that have picked new police chiefs in recent years have chosen candidates from out of state. If Henderson does that it will be bucking its recent history for a department that started in 1953.
The city opted to stay within the department when it named Mayberry to the job in April 2000 to replace Tommy Burns, who had been another in-house selection. The city even canceled plans to spend up to $25,000 for a nationwide search when City Manager Phil Speight said Mayberry was capable of handling the job. In 1994, Burns replaced another in-house chief, James Goff.
Henderson won't use a search firm this time either. Instead, the city's human resources department released a brochure this week on Henderson's Web site outlining qualifications for candidates who will earn up to $146,819 a year, the salary Mayberry receives.
Henderson is also preparing advertisements that will run in several law enforcement and government publications. Assistant City Manager Mark Calhoun said a national search was warranted this time.
"We are a very large city compared with last time, and there are a lot of issues," Calhoun said. "We are looking for someone who is flexible and has the experience. We don't know if those internally will apply or not. We decided this time to go out and make sure everyone is given a chance."
Henderson Deputy Chief James White, who will become acting chief when Mayberry departs, said Wednesday he won't seek the job. Assembly Speaker Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, a deputy chief with the department and expected candidate for governor, said last week that he's not interested in the job. Calhoun said he doesn't know if any of the four captains in the department will apply.
The department has a $50 million annual budget and needs to deal with the explosive growth in a town that already has 230,000 people and is looking to annex, which would make the police department's jurisdiction even more far-flung from end to end.
The department had 204 officers when Mayberry took over in 2000. It now has 267 police officers, 39 corrections officers and 106 full-time civilian employees and will reach 500 officers within the next five years if the state approves a sales tax increase for Clark County, Speight said.
With its two deputy chiefs and four captains, Henderson has a similar-size command structure compared to other departments in the region whose cities surpass or approach 200,000 in population. It has fewer sworn officers, however, compared to those departments.
For comparison, the staffing in other regional departments is as follow:
"I think we are looking for someone who is a seasoned professional and able to have vision for the organization," Speight said.
In its brochure advertising the job, Henderson called an ideal chief someone who has a "can-do attitude," is persistent, encourages input, can provide effective positive and motivational leadership and is politically astute without being political.
A bachelor's degree is required as are 15 years in law enforcement and five years of full-time management. Having a master's degree is considered desirable along with FBI training.
There isn't expected to be a shortage of applicants.
Ron Pierini, the president of the Nevada Sheriffs's & Chiefs' Association, said Henderson can expect to draw candidates with 25 to 30 years of law enforcement experience who are over the age of 50. There will be people who are nearing retirement and don't have an opportunity to advance further in their careers at their current job, he said.
Nevada already attracts a lot of retired law enforcement officers because it has no state income tax and a low overall crime rate, Pierini said. Instead of retiring, many of these experienced candidates will be willing to work at least another 10 years just for the challenge to head their own department, especially in a fast-growing city, he said.
"I think for a lot of people who are assistant chiefs reaching retirement level, this is a career dream come through to run their own agency," Pierini said "There will be huge interest because it is a large city, and it's attractive because large agencies pay fairly high."
Henderson Councilman Andy Hafen said he supports a nationwide search for chief, but he is not against promoting someone into the top job.
"As far as the council is concerned, we want to get the best candidate," Hafen said. "If it is in-house that is fine. If it is someone on the outside, that is fine also."
Chuck Wexler, executive director of the Police Executive Research Forum, a Washington-based think tank for police chiefs, said there are pros and cons to hiring a chief from inside the department. Candidates from the outside have a longer learning curve than those hired from the within the department, but they also have no loyalties and bring a fresh perspective of where the department is and needs to go.
Wexler said the most important factor in choosing a chief is his or her ability, no matter whether that person already works in the department. Large departments need chiefs with broad experience who know how to manage growth with limited resources. They need to know about Homeland Security, use of force and technology, he said.
"When people ask if it is better to pick from the inside or outside, the answer is usually that you pick the best person for the city," Wexler said.
But, Wexler said, Henderson is limiting itself in its search by using its human resources department to post ads and waiting for candidates to apply. The best hires require cities to recruit, he said.
"Simply putting in ads is the worst way to get good candidates," Wexler said. "Good candidates don't apply because they have good jobs already. You have to recruit them.'
Ted Cooper, Henderson's manager of employment and compensation, said the city has conducted searches for department heads in the past and done well by posting jobs and waiting for candidates to apply. He said he expects plenty of candidates and pointed out Henderson received 125 applicants for a human resources position.
"We have a sellable product, and I am not anticipating issues in attracting quality candidates," Cooper said. "Finding the right fit is always the challenge."
Bill Ames, president of the Peace Officers Research Association of Nevada and a deputy sheriff in Washoe County, said officers simply want the best person for the job, and police officer associations want a say in the selection.
Cooper said he experts Henderson officers to have some involvement, but doesn't know what it will be at this time.
Once resumes are reviewed, Henderson plans to bring in candidates for interviews in May. There will be one city panel and one panel made up of law enforcement professionals in the region. The panels will make a recommendation to Speight whose choice must be ratified by the council.
Several other cities in the region have looked outside of their departments to replace their chiefs.
Scott Finlayson, the police chief of Springville, Utah, and a board member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police, said he figures Henderson is seeking to fill "a job that would be interesting to a whole lot of police executives around the country," Finlayson said. "It is a resort area. Henderson is a large bedroom community of Las Vegas. And the desert climate will be attractive to a lot of people."
He expects the Henderson job will draw a lot of interest from command positions in police agencies in Los Angeles and San Francisco in particular.
Metro Police Undersheriff Doug Gillespie said he hasn't heard of any interest in the job from anyone in his department but that doesn't mean no one will apply. He said the job is attractive because the new chief will work for a respected and progressive department in a fast-growing region.
archive
