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Updated: 8:09 AM CST January 23, 2021 FORT WORTH, Texas The Fort Worth Police Department will soon have someone new at the helm. Six finalists, with a combined total of at least 165 years of experience, are in the running to become Fort Worth’s 27th police chief. Five of the candidates work in Texas police departments, and one works in Nevada. The city conducted in-person interviews with the candidates earlier in January, had candidates participate in a public forum, and formed panels of members of the department and community stakeholders for each of the candidates to meet with. City Manager David Cooke will make the final selection for the chief position, and that decision will need to be ratified by the city council. That decision is expected to be made by the end of January. ....
Fort Worth Police Chief Ed Kraus is retiring, and six people are in the running to replace him. The city provided KERA with each candidate s cover letter and resume. The public met those candidates on Thursday night, at a forum at the Fort Worth Convention Center. Residents submitted over 100 questions, which were boiled down into six topics. One area of particular interest: How each candidate would hold officers accountable for being disrespectful, or for using excessive force. Wendy Baimbridge an assistant chief in the Houston Police Department said departments can t let misbehaving officers off the hook. We unfortunately have had to let go of a lot of officers. I ve been under some chiefs that didn t. And unfortunately, that will fester and grow worse,” she said. ....
Who will be Fort Worth s next police chief? Six finalists wanting the job answer questions from the public All six candidates vying for Chief Ed Kraus job are police executives, with five currently serving in Texas. FWPD currently employs two candidates. Author: Lauren Zakalik, Matt Howerton Published: 4:12 PM CST January 14, 2021 Updated: 11:06 PM CST January 14, 2021 The forum began at 6:30 p.m. inside the ballroom at the Fort Worth Convention Center. But the forum looked much different than previous ones because of the pandemic. Still, that didn t quell the appetite of many who wanted to hear how each candidate would handle an increase in violent crime and cultural change within the department. ....
The city provided KERA with each candidate’s resume and cover letter, which they submitted as part of their job applications. Here’s more about their backgrounds, and what each one has to say about why they want to lead the city’s police department. Julie A. Swearingin Julie Swearingin Swearingin is one of two internal candidates for the job. She’s worked in the Fort Worth Police Department since 1995 and is one of three assistant chiefs to Kraus. She wrote in her cover letter that she would like to continue Kraus’ efforts to strengthen relationships with the community. “I believe we can enhance public trust; I believe we can continue to be more transparent and accountable, she wrote, adding that she would also like to grow community policing efforts. ....
A Plan for Violent Crime The very first question addressed during the forum asked candidates what their plan would be to reduce the increase in violent crime and homicides seen in the city of Fort Worth in the past year. Here s a portion of their responses: During a community forum Thursday night, final candidates for Fort Worth Police Chief – Houston Assistant Police Chief Wendy Baimbridge, Austin Assistant Police Chief Troy Gay and Las Vegas Municipal Police Assistant Sheriff Christopher Jones – were asked how they would tackle violent crime problems. If you re talking about crime, you have to work on that intelligence on what s going on within those gangs. Who are the shotcallers in the robbery groups? And that takes more than just looking at data. Get with the DA s office. Get with the feds, said Wendy Baimbridge, assistant chief of Houston Police. ....