Richland Taking Another Go-Round With This To Find A Police Chief

Stop me if you've heard this before.  The City of Richland is launching a nationwide search to find a new Police Chief.  This isn't the first time Richland has used an agency to conduct a nationwide search to find it's next top cop.

Let's go back to 2018 after the Chief Chris Skinner left to take a job in Oregon.  The City launched a nationwide search, all fifty states nationwide search, and the two finalists were within 75 miles from Richland.  At that time one was serving as the Chief of Police in Sunnyside and the other as Chief in Yakima.  The City decided to reject both men.

They hired John Bruce from Frisco, TX in 2019, without the benefit of a nationwide search.  Bruce resigned in 2022.  We laid out how that came to pass and what followed with his successor, Brigit Clary.  So then the City launched another nationwide search.  That led to this:

One finalist was Chief of Police in port orchard, the other was Chief in Selah.  Again, both from Washington State and guess what...the City decided to reject both finalists again.  Deputy Chief David Neher has been interim chief since January 1st of this year.  As of today he will no longer serve in that position.

The new interim Chief of Police is Chris Meidl who led the Spokane Police Department for roughly seven years.  Meidl resigned in November of last year after being a part of Spokane's force for nearly three full decades.  Meidl is expected to stay on the position up to six months as, you may have guessed, another nationwide search for Richland's next Police Chief plays out.

This time the City will spend money with Mosaic Public Partners for the latest foray.  In a press release. the City said they were "excited" to launch their.  I'm guessing the men and women and blue, along with Richland residents, will be more excited if the third nationwide search since 2018 results in something other than rejecting the finalists.

This is the timeline for the search that was laid out:

• Open Recruitment – Applications accepted beginning Friday, April 12, 2024
• First Review of Applications – May 13, 2024
• Finalists Selected for Interviews – May 20, 2024
• Finalists Announced – Early June 2024 (bios of finalists to be shared with public)
• In-Person Interviews & Public Engagement – Mid-June 2024 (date to be announced)
• Background Investigation – July 2024
• Candidate Announcement – August 2024

Here's hoping the third time is the charm.