Centralia City Manager Rob Hill, wearing cap, huddles with the five finalists for police chief after a public gathering at the train depot.
By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
CENTRALIA – In suits, ties and shiny shoes, they chatted, shook hands and answered questions from a small number of people who came out to meet them last night; the five men hoping to become Centralia’s next chief of police.
The short meet and greet in a conference room at the Centralia train depot followed a day of interviews from one panel of department heads and another comprised of select members of the community.
Newly elected Lewis County Sheriff Rob Snaza said he was kind of excited to see who would end up getting the job.
“We’re fortunate to have this caliber of candidates,” Snaza said. “We’re all about us working together.”
Snaza was one of five who had spoken to the finalists earlier in the day. Joining him in the interviews were Jenny Collins, executive director of the Visiting Nurses Foundation; Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer; Lacey Police Department Chief Dusty Pierpont; and Centralia College Athletic Director Bob Peters.
Centralia City Manager Rob Hill likewise seemed enthusiastic about the quality of the individuals he has to choose from.
“I’m pretty confident our next chief will come out of this group,” Hill said.
Centralia Police Department Chief Bob Berg is retiring in May, after 11 years in the job. With assistance from the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs, the city began a nationwide search in December, and screened applications from 20 individuals.
The pay for the head of the department with 31 commissioned officers in Lewis County’s most populated city was advertised as between about $100,000 and $122,000.
Two of the group come from the banks of Lake Michigan.
James Held has been chief of the Lake Forest (Illinois) Police Department for almost three years, an organization with 40 sworn officers.
Thirty miles to the south, Lt. Maury Richards has been with the Chicago Police Department for 23 years.
Carl Nielsen is a captain, and second in command at the Turlock Police Department in California’s central valley.
Closer to home, Rod Baker comes from the Pierce Transit Police Department, which he created. Baker is on a yearlong sabbatical to get his degree in criminal justice administration
And from inside the Centralia Police Department, Cmdr. James Rich is hoping to become its next chief.
Rich, with 33 years of law enforcement experience, said the agency has made huge strides in the past 10 to 15 years. He wants to help see it continue down that path, he said.
Hill planned to conduct his interviews today, and expects to do his background checking in person, on one or more of his final choices, he said.
He has no set date for when he will make his decision, he said.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter