City of Albuquerque Launches Search for Permanent Police Chief

May 2, 2018

Mayor Tim Keller announced that a national search for a permanent Chief of Police for the Albuquerque Police Department (APD) is underway. The national search began with the engagement of a consulting firm in March and a final selection of the candidate is expected to occur in June.

“On day one, we put in a new leadership team committed to reforming APD and rebuilding trust with the community,” stated Mayor Keller. “As I said at the time, we simply couldn’t wait for a national search to get a new team on board to focus on accountability, reform and community policing. Our interim chief has brought crucial leadership to APD through this transition and has gone a long way toward turning this department around.”

“We have shaken things up by restructuring the police department while taking a proactive approach to working with our partners on reform, and submitted a budget that will finally fund the public safety efforts our city needs,” added Mayor Keller. “We’re seeing better use of crime fighting strategies, and including neighborhood leaders and local businesses along the way, and we’re working to retain and recruit the officers we need. Now, it’s time to complete our police chief search.”

Mayor Keller said previously that his criteria for a Chief of Police is someone with deep knowledge of our city and police department, an outside leadership perspective to implement change, and the respect of both frontline officers and the community.

Mayor Keller has sought input on public safety from hundreds of people from all across Albuquerque at the Transition Capstone Event, and is continuing that effort through the Community Policing Councils. Residents can also provide their input regarding the search process by submitting comments through the City’s website.

The link to the feedback form is here: Chief of Police Community Feedback

The job posting is available here: Chief of Police Job Description