A United States senator is adding his voice to the calls demanding New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell release the names of the candidates seeking to become the next New Orleans police superintendent.
In a speech on the Senate floor on Wednesday, Sen. John Kennedy (R-Madisonville) complained about what he called a lack of transparency in the search.
“Our mayor, as is her right, has decided to handle the selection of a new police chief herself,” Sen. Kennedy said. “She has appointed an outside third-party group to quarterback the selection of a new police chief. That outside third-party group says it has done a nationwide search. It had 33 applicants for police chief, apparently. We don’t know this for a fact. Most of them were not interviewed. Six were."
The outside group Sen. Kennedy referred to is the International Association of Chiefs of Police. On Wednesday, Cantrell says that group has helped her remain transparent during the process because she and her administration have allowed them to work unfettered.
Still, Kennedy bemoaned the fact that the only information the Cantrell Administration has provided is the number of candidates who applied and the number of semifinalists that were selected.
“And that’s all we know," Kennedy said. "That’s all we know. It’s one of the most important -- maybe the most important -- selections in municipal government in the last decade in New Orleans, and our mayor has shared nothing else with us. Nothing. Zero. Zilch. Nada.”
On Wednesday, Cantrell reiterated her stance that she will not release the names of the applicants for the job, despite the fact those records are public documents. Cantrell blamed the media for trying to "do harm," implying that journalists would try to harass the applicants if their names were released.
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