City announces two finalists for Austin's chief of police
AUSTIN, Texas - The City of Austin announced its two finalists for Austin's chief of police.
City manager T.C. Broadnax said Lisa Davis and Jefferey Norman are the top two candidates.
"The search for a permanent Chief of Police was at the top of my priority list when I came on as Austin City Manager in May," Broadnax said. "I am confident we have identified the best candidates that will enable us to select an exemplary, experienced leader to guide the dedicated men and women of the Austin Police Department while continuing to collaborate and build trust with the community."
Davis is currently an assistant police chief at the Cincinnati Police Department and Norman is the chief of police at the Milwaukee Police Department.
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Lisa Davis has been with the Cincinnati Police Department for over 30 years. She is currently the assistant chief overseeing homicide, major offenders, narcotics, and personal crimes. Her bio highlights her passion for building community relationships and community policing.
Jeffrey Norman has been chief of police for the Milwaukee Police department for four years but has been with the department since 1996. His bio highlights his success through his various promotions and work ethic within the department as an officer and later as chief.
"I'm most looking forward to is actually hearing from them," said Michael Bullock, President of the Austin Police Association.
Bullock says both candidates look qualified on paper, but he is looking forward to next week when the public will actually get to hear from both directly.
"I think the most important thing that we need out of whoever is going to fill this role is that their number one priority is taking care of the officers that we have now. If you don't take care of the officers that we have now, then trying to accomplish all of our other goals is going to be even more difficult," he said.
"The most important thing is going to be someone who comes in, listens, learns, takes care of who we have now, and then we'll be able to tackle a lot of things from there. There's going to be some tough times ahead for them, that's for sure," said Bullock.
They will be introduced at a meet-and-greet event on Tuesday, July 23 at the Palmer Events Center at 6 p.m.
The public can submit questions that may be included during the discussion. Questions will be accepted until July 19 at 11:59 p.m.
For more information, and to submit questions, click here.