Police union president urges city to hire chief from inside

Cameron Knight, Cincinnati Enquirer
·2 min read
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Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 69 President Daniel Hils stands in front of the lodge's memorial honoring fallen Cincinnati police officers.
Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 69 President Daniel Hils stands in front of the lodge's memorial honoring fallen Cincinnati police officers.

Cincinnati's police union president Dan Hils is urging the city to choose one of the two finalists for chief who are from the city.

Interim chief Teresa Theetge and assistant chief Lisa Davis are among four finalists vying for the position.

“Cincinnati is a unique city as are the hundreds of police officers and FOP members who work to keep it safe every day,” FOP President Dan Hils said. “The FOP strongly urges city leadership to select one of the qualified women finalists who’ve worked alongside those brave officers already and know this city.”

The four finalists vying to becoming Cincinnati next police chief, from left, Todd Chamberlain, Lisa Davis, Larry Boone and Teresa Theetge.
The four finalists vying to becoming Cincinnati next police chief, from left, Todd Chamberlain, Lisa Davis, Larry Boone and Teresa Theetge.

The other two finalists are from outside the city. Larry Boone is the former police chief of Norfolk, Virgina. Todd Chamberlain is the former police chief for the Los Angeles Unified School District Police Department.

Hils said in a press release there are "concerning issues" with both Chamberlain and Boone.

Hils said that more than a decade ago Chamberlain was transferred after a series of racial and sexual harassment lawsuits were filed in connection with the Los Angeles Police Department's community relations office. The department said in media reports the transfer was not connected to the lawsuit.

Hils also pointed to a situation in Norfolk from last year. A lieutenant for the department donated $25 anonymously to the defense fund for Kyle Rittenhouse using his work email saying, "you did nothing wrong," according to media reports. After Boone and the city administration learned of the donation, the lieutenant was placed on administrative duty and later fired. Last November, after Rittenhouse was acquitted, the officer began fighting to get his job back.

“There are significant unanswered questions and potential red flags with both out-of-state finalists for the job,” Hils said. “Given their unaddressed problems and the steep learning curve they’d face in a new city, the FOP strongly urges city leadership to select either of the qualified internal candidates.”

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Police union president urges city to hire chief from inside