Richland picked 2 finalists for police chief. When will we know who they are?
Richland has picked two finalists for its police chief position, but they’re waiting until next week to announce the finalists.
The city is keeping the information about the candidates a secret until a Tuesday, Jan. 9, reception at Richland City Hall, officials said. The event takes place 6-7:30 p.m. at the council chamber at 625 Swift Boulevard.
“We have scheduled to introduce the candidates during the reception,” said Alison Manka, with the city’s communication office. “Currently, we are actively engaged int he interview process, and it is our priority to uphold the integrity of these interviews.”
Former Chief Brigit Clary left the position at the end of December after announcing her retirement in September. Deputy Chief David Neher stepped into the role as the interim chief, according to news release.
The city worked with the Washington Association of Sheriffs and Police Chiefs to run a nationwide recruitment effort, according to the city release. It’s unclear how large of a response the city has received, but it picked finalists in December.
“We are excited to welcome the candidates for police chief to our city,” City Manager Jon Amundson said in the release. “I am encouraged by the robust search process conducted by (the association) and the quality of candidates who applied.”
The city doesn’t have a time frame for when they plan to have someone in the seat, saying they will have a better idea after a background check.
Whoever is selected will be the third new chief the city has hired in the past five years.
Outgoing chief
The announcement of the reception comes on the heels of learning that Clary had been placed on the Benton County prosecutor’s “Potential Impeachment Disclosure” list often called a “Brady list.” These are witnesses whose integrity and trustworthiness could be questioned if they were called to testify.
It’s rare for the head of a police department to be placed on the “Brady” list. However, locally, it happened in 2021 when former Benton County Sheriff Jerry Hatcher was given that designation. Voters have since removed him from office.
The issue came to light because of a 6-year-old report by her former employer, the Federal Way Police Department. The report claimed she engaged in nepotism by approving overtime for her husband and then lied about it to investigators.
According to an e-mail from Federal Way City Attorney J. Ryan Call, the then lieutenant left the department ahead of being fired.
After receiving word in 2017 that Clary was the focus of an internal investigation by the department, she was placed on the King County prosecutor’s “pending Brady list,” said Daniel Clark, the chief deputy with the mainstream criminal division of the King County Prosecutor’s Office.
This means defense attorneys in cases where she was involved were provided information about the pending investigation.
“In practice, there is no functional or practical difference between our “pending” and “sustained” list from our standpoint because we are obligated by law to provide notice to defense counsel of both ‘pending’ and ‘sustained’ findings related to dishonesty, and we take that obligation seriously,” he told the Herald.
While city officials were aware of the investigation, they have said they were not aware of the details until it was sent by anonymous sources to the city, the prosecutor’s office and the Tri-City Herald.
