Minneapolis spent $68,000 on police chief search, now it could start over

Taxpayers spent $68,000 on the search for a new Minneapolis police chief, according to city officials.

The Details

Now, that process could start over after the Minneapolis City Council rejected Interim Chief Bill Peterson’s nomination in an 8-5 vote.

Minneapolis City Council rejects Frey’s police chief nominee

The decision leaves Minneapolis without a permanent police chief. It also comes just weeks after the City Council voted to eliminate the Office of Community Safety, adding to the uncertainty about who will oversee some of the city’s top public safety efforts moving forward.

Minneapolis Mayor Frey nominates Interim Chief Bill Peterson as next police chief Peterson, a more than 30-year veteran of the Minneapolis Police Department, was nominated by Mayor Jacob Frey following a national search that drew roughly 20 applicants. But after hours of questioning and debate Thursday, council members voted against confirming him as the city’s next chief.

“Thank you all,” Peterson said after the vote.

Former Minneapolis City Council President Andrea Jenkins, who served on a community panel that interviewed police chief candidates during the search process, said she was caught off guard by the council’s rejection.

“My initial thought was, wow, what a surprise,” she said.

Jenkins said the candidate pool was slim.

“There’s not a lot of people who are stepping forward to say, ‘I want to lead the Minneapolis Police Department,'” she said.

So what’s next?

The council’s rejection vote does not necessarily end Peterson’s path to becoming chief.

Mayor Jacob Frey has the authority to veto the council’s rejection and send the matter back to council members. However, Frey suggested the situation remains complicated.

“To a certain extent, a decision like that could put it into no man’s land where the decision would remain with the council because they likely don’t have the votes to override the mayoral veto, but I don’t yet have the votes to get a majority,” Frey said.

The council would need nine votes to override a veto. Peterson’s rejection passed on an 8-5 vote.

Frey also acknowledged uncertainty about whether Peterson would want to continue serving as interim chief.

“I don’t know that he wants to continue,” Frey said.

For Jenkins, the larger concern is what prolonged uncertainty could mean for public safety in Minneapolis.

Minneapolis City Council approves eliminating Office of Community Safety “I’m really concerned about public safety,” she said. “The fact that the council has indicated dismantling the Office of Community Safety and there wouldn’t be a commissioner at that point, and then subsequently denying a more permanent role for the police chief, I think it really puts public safety in jeopardy.”

Jenkins also said she is concerned about the possibility of restarting the search altogether.

“If the process had to start all over again, and Interim Chief Peterson decided not to stick around, then you’d have to name another interim chief and start the search all over again, and it was pretty slim pickings in the initial process. So yes, I would be concerned,” she said.

City officials confirmed the police chief search cost taxpayers approximately $68,000. They have not provided an estimate for how much a new search could cost if Minneapolis decides to begin the process again.

City leaders could provide more information next week about the next steps in selecting a permanent police chief.

KSTP also reached out to MPD for a statement from the department and the chief. A spokesperson referred KSTP to the mayor’s comments.

More background information

The vote highlighted differing opinions among council members about what Minneapolis needs in its next chief.

Before the vote, Council Member LaTrisha Vetaw said she believed another internal candidate was better suited for the position.

“For me that candidate was Charlie Adams,” she said.

Adams is an inspector in the 4th Precinct. He was also named by the mayor as one of the four finalists for the position.

“Charlie is largely responsible for the reduction in crime and the historic reductions we have seen on the north side. That is no small accomplishment,” Vetaw said.

Other council members argued the city should look outside the department for its next leader.

“We cannot transform or reach that transformational leadership within the department with someone who has spent their entire career there,” Council Member Robin Wonsley said.

Jenkins said Peterson joined the candidate pool later in the process after previously indicating he was not interested in the permanent role.

“So I was surprised that his application came in at the last minute,” Jenkins said. “But, you know, given his experience, given his, you know, the fact that he had been working on in his interim role, really working on eliminating some of the backlog in Internal Affairs cases, I really thought that this could be a pretty good selection.”