BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – The list of candidates to fill Chief Murphy Paul’s position was whittled down earlier this month.
On, Monday, Oct. 23, the Police Chief Review Committee looked at candidates to fill that position. The candidates were given time to answer questions and make opening and closing statements.
Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome said she will be choosing the next head of the Baton Rouge Police Department diligently. “It’s imperative to consider the needs of our community and commit to supporting the next police chief no matter who they are,” Broome said.
Members asked candidates about their time as officers. A few of the candidates touched on what they are striving to change or improve if they were chosen for police chief.
“Main things within the first hundred days would be I want to meet with a lot of the officers and roll calls and check morale,” Lt. Bryan Ballard said.
The other candidates talked about improving recruitment and retention.
“I believe that it’s not about the quantity, it’s all about the quality. If we recruit or lower our standards, which I don’t believe in, we’ll end up, in my opinion, paying for dearly on the back end,” Deputy Chief Myron K. Daniels, Baton Rouge Police said.
The committee’s recommendations on candidates will be taken into consideration, but it is Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome who will have the final say on Baton Rouge’s next police chief.
The next meeting in the search for BRPD’s new police chief will be at the Metropolitan Council Chambers in City Hall at 5 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 26.
