The mayor’s Citizens Advisory Committee will hold a public meeting on Oct. 24 to hear public comments on the search for a new St. Louis City police chief.
The committee will have an executive session to discuss the upcoming interviews with candidates for the position, and then take questions and comments from the public. The meeting will be held at the O’Fallon Park YMCA, 4343 W. Florissant Ave., from 6 to 8 pm.
The Citizens Advisory Committee was formed in May 2017 to help guide the search for a new police chief, give feedback on candidates and ensure there was input into the process from those outside city government.
Interviews have not yet begun for the position, and candidates have until Oct. 26 to apply. This is the first time St. Louis has conducted the formal process of an open search for a police chief which will include candidates from outside the department.
The committee has thirteen members, including former members of the Police Board of Commissioners, a former police chief, leaders of the Forward Through Ferguson organization and a Baptist pastor, among others.
Mayor Lyda Krewson has been criticized by protesters for the continued employment of interim police chief Lawrence O’Toole, including during a public panel at Harris-Stowe State University where she was a speaker. Protesters have called for O’Toole to be fired due to his handling of the protests against the Jason Stockley verdict and his rhetoric, such as saying police officers “owned the night” of the verdicts.
Krewson recently announced the appointment of a new Public Safety Director, circuit court judge Jimmie Edwards. With approval from the mayor, Edwards will have the final decision on who to hire as the new police chief and will also have the ability to replace O’Toole.
“Mayor Krewson and the Committee believe that a hire this important takes time to get right and they are committed to selecting someone whose work honors and reflects the community’s priorities every day on the job,” the Citizens Advisory Committee’s website says.
Jessica Karins is an editorial intern for the St. Louis American from Webster University.
