Acting Cedar Rapids police chief says next chief should resemble Graham

The next Cedar Rapids police chief should continue the philosophies former chief Greg Graham put into place, Acting Police Chief Richard Stephens said Monday.

Stephens was speaking at a meeting of the Civil Service Commission, who will eventually recommend candidates to City Manager Jeff Pomerantz. The City Council will make the final decision who will lead the 203-person department.

Stephens said Graham stressed civil leadership – serving the public, city leaders and themselves – and pushed for more community policing.

“People are really worried that we're not going to continue with that philosophy, but we want to and we have to,” Stephens said. “It's gotten us on track and kept us there.”

Graham resigned Jan. 3 to lead the Ocala, Florida Police Department, where he served 25 years before coming to Cedar Rapids. Commission chairwoman Nancy Evans said officers mentioned their appreciation for Graham's approach during recent interviews for promotions.

“We heard a lot about the value of Chief Graham's philosophy and what it meant to the department,” Evans said.

Pomerantz said previously a search firm would be utilized to conduct a nationwide search, which will also include internal candidates. He said he would like to see the next chief hired by the end of March, when Stephens is retiring, but was not sure that would be possible.

At Monday's meeting, commissioners agreed to stick with a similar job description as was used in 2008 when Graham was hired, requiring 15 years of experience in law enforcement. The commission added language that the ideal candidate would have experience in a department of similar size and complexity to CRPD.

In a change from the last police chief hiring, the commission will do the first interviews and forward a list of finalists to Pomerantz. Former city manager Jim Prosser determined finalists when Graham was hired, but commission member Michael Birmingham said that process takes away the commission's power.

“Seems like to me we were putting the cart before the horse,” Birmingham said.

Pomerantz requested that the commission give him list of around five to eight finalists who have passed all background checks.

The next step is for Pomerantz to select a search firm. It will then use Monday's decisions to develop a profile of the ideal candidate, which will be presented to the city council.