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Tenn. police chief gets power to hire top brass outside the PD

The change gets rid of a longstanding policy that required the chief to hire within the agency

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Knoxville Police Department

By Suzie Ziegler

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knoxville, Tennessee, Police Chief Paul Noel now has the power to hire command staff outside of his department, Knox News reported on Wednesday. The move gets rid of a longstanding policy that required Knoxville’s police chief to appoint command staff from within the department’s ranks.

The city’s Civil Service Merit Board approved the change this week. Now, Noel will be able to hire and fire deputy chiefs “at will,” the report said. The move will help Noel increase diversity in the higher ranks and bring in like-minded leaders, according to Knox News.

A city spokesperson noted that other municipal departments can already appoint their own leadership, and that it’s not an uncommon practice among police departments.

“(Mayor Indya Kincannon) believes the police chief needs to be able to appoint his own leadership team, just like fire chief, all other city directors and the mayor,” city spokesperson Kristin Farley told Knox News in an email. “It’s the common practice across the country and was the structure of KPD until 15-20 years ago.”

Not everyone was on board with the change. Deputy Chief Cindy Gass worries that fewer rank-and-file officers will strive for a leadership position, and Capt. Tony Willis believes the change will scare officers away from taking the necessary training to become deputy chief candidates, according to the report.

Bill Lyons, head of the Civil Service Merit Board, says he approves of the change because a department head should be able to trust their executives.

“A leadership team must have the confidence and ability to function with full trust and that won’t necessarily be the case if someone is in a leadership position just because they’re in a career path,” Lyons told Knox News.

https://twitter.com/Knoxville_PD/status/1520866616568864783

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