Three Cedar Rapids police captains begin interim chief rotation

A three-man rotation of interim chiefs for the Cedar Rapids police department began Monday.

The move comes after the resignation of Chief Greg Graham back in January.

Interim deputy dhief Richard Stephens retired Sunday. Now three captains will share the interim position for the next six months: Administrative Operations Captain Bernie Walther, Patrol Division Captain Tom Jonker, and Criminal Investigative Division Captain Steve O'Konek.

Each will serve 60 days as interim chief, and will offer support when the other captains have their shot.

O'Konek was a candidate back when Graham was selected and plans to throw his hat in the ring again.  But all three say, for the time being, they'll work together to run the department until a permanent chief is named.

With more than 78 years of combined experience, the three captains say they'll guide the department through a time of transition.

"We're all the same rank.  We all work together.  I think the city manager's idea was for all of us to get some experience in doing that,” Jonker said.

Each captain will take the lead position for two months, in addition to their current jobs, before passing the baton off to the next captain.

Jonker described the extra duties as "more dealing with city hall, with the city manager, with other city staffers trying to orchestrate things and make sure things happen for the police department."

Jonker is taking the first shift, followed by O'Konek.

"Where one person may not be strong, we've got somebody else in line that can pick that up,” O'Konek said.

Walther will take the last leg, and said he hopes a permanent chief will be ready to take over and stay a while.

The new chief should "show interest in the department, not necessarily use it as a stepping stone,” Walther said.

It's also important to "recognize what the city was before the flood, what it was during the flood, and what it's striving to after the flood," O'Konek said. "I think it's important for someone to know that history and continue to move in that direction that best supports what our community is going through."

Until that appointment, they'll share the duties and continue police work as normal.

"Hopefully the public doesn't notice any difference.  We plan to move forward and be seamless in our transitions to each other and to the new chief,” said Walther.

The last time multiple people served as interim chief was before Greg Graham was hired.  That's because there's a 90-day limit for interim chiefs.

The city manager's office is finalizing the requirements and application process for hiring the next police chief.