Fort Worth has six finalists vying to be the city’s next police chief – two are internal candidates.
The public will be able to meet the candidates Sept. 10 at a community forum from 7-9 p.m. at the Bob Bolen Public Safety Complex, 501 W. Felix St.
“We are very pleased with the group of finalists and look forward to the process next week,” City Manager David Cooke said in a press release. He added that all candidates bring different experiences and backgrounds into consideration.
“All of the candidates have experience working in large urban police departments,” he said.
Cooke has said transparency and inclusiveness are important in the selection process. In addition to the community forum, people can submit questions by calling 817-392-8085 or emailing [email protected]. Questions can also be submitted for the community forum through mySidewalk.com.
The city has been without a chief since early January 2015, when Jeffrey Halstead officially retired from the department. Halstead served as chief for six years.
The candidates are:
Kenneth Dean
Dean has served on the Fort Worth police department since 1992. In his current position as assistant police chief, he commands over 1000 personnel and manages a budget of over $106 million.
Abdul Pridgen
Pridgen currently serves as assistant chief over finance and personnel for the Fort Worth police department. He has been with the department since 1992, and currently oversees 174 employees and a $270 million budget.
Jose Banales
Banales has served in the San Antonio police department for 32 years, and is currently the department’s assistant police chief.
Joel Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald is currently police chief in Allentown, Pa., a city of 119,000 people. He has served in the Philadelphia police department for 17 years.
Anne Kirkpatrick
Kirkpatrick is currently a senior instructor in the FBI Law Enforcement Executive Leadership Development Program in Seattle. She has served as chief deputy of King County, Wash., and police chief of three cities in Washington.
Kirk Munden
Munden retired in 2014 as executive assistant police chief in Houston after serving the Houston police department for 33 years.
