AUSTIN (KXAN) — On Friday, Austin's city manager provided an update on the search for a new chief of police, saying a hiring decision will take "additional time."
City Manager T. C. Broadnax said he was still reviewing feedback, as well as input from stakeholder interview panels and the Austin City Council.
Broadnax said for the reasons above, he decided not to request a meeting for Tuesday, which would have been used to ask the mayor and city council to confirm a new police chief.
“This position is too critical to our Police Department, the City organization as a whole, and this community to rush. Therefore, I’m going to take additional time to consider our two very qualified candidates before making a final decision,” Broadnax said.
Currently, the finalists are Lisa Davis, an assistant chief for the Cincinnati Police Department, and Jeffrey Norman, the chief of the Milwaukee Police Department.
According to Davis' LinkedIn profile, she has served as Cincinnati’s assistant chief since 2019 and has worked at the department for roughly 30 years.
“She created a city-wide problem-solving unit trained to address crime and disorder in chronically violent locations, reducing overall crime and increasing the quality of life for area residents,” according to information provided about the candidates sent in an internal memo to the mayor’s office and city council.
During a discussion with the candidates, Davis said gaining officers’ trust and building morale is a priority of hers, and explained how she believes that trickles down into stronger relationships with the community.
“You have to look at morale and retention, those are all tied together,” she said. “You boost morale by listening to the officers and professional staff there. Listen, listen to their concerns, be present. Once you start doing that morale gets raised, no better recruiter for a police department than those that work there.”
Norman has served with the Milwaukee Police Department since 1996, and in 2021, he was sworn in as the chief of the department.
“While a commander of Milwaukee’s District 3, Chief Norman instituted robust community engagement for his team, a mission he still holds today,” the city’s internal memo about the Austin chief candidates states.
During the discussion, Norman emphasized the need for a chief to set the tone for both the city and the department.
“Do you have a unified message? Do you show the support to those who are putting in the work?” he said. “Those messages affect recruitment and also retention. I am not fully aware of the details of the contract but I am hoping there can be some positive resolution between that… so that the work that needs to be done in the city can be focused on, which is keeping the city safe.”
