ST. LOUIS (KMOX) -- Police Chief John Hayden will be retiring next month, while the search for his replacement gets a re-boot.
Hayden, who announced his retirement in September, but delayed it while the search for his replacement was underway, now says he will leave the post on June 18. Lt. Col. Michael Sack, a 28-year veteran of the force, will serve as interim chief until Hayden's full-time replacement is hired.
Thanks to funding from the Regional Business Council, the city is hiring the Boulware Group, a Chicago-based executive search firm, which has helped hire chiefs in Detroit, Charlotte, Prince Georges County and D.C, to consult with the hiring. The Center for Policing Equity will also assist.
"The previous search had some issues," says Mayor Tishaura Jones, "we didn't cast the net wide enough, in my opinion." Jones says she wants to make sure she is able to keep her promise to be transparent, including holding town halls and neighborhood meetings with all the candidates.
"Our next police chief," Jones says, "must believe in transforming public safety. Ready to deploy innovative solutions and committed to building trust with communities through collaboration. We, as a city, must meet this moment."
Sack says he is confident he will be able to carry out the duties as interim chief, without any issue. "Our focus will continue to be, as it has been, on violent crime," Sack says. "Not just creating a wide swath through a community to effect arrests, which can cause more harm than good, but by identifying particular bad actors, developing cases and presenting those cases to the circuit attorney's office and the U.S. Attorneys office for prosecution." He says the department will also put its resources in areas where crime spikes.
Sacks also wants to continue the focus on integrity within the agency. "We have to reflect our core values," he says, "leadership, service, integrity and fair treatment to all."
Jones says Sack, who was finalist in the last search, is in the running to be named permanent chief this time. "We share a lot of the same beliefs," she says.
Hayden says serving as chief has been the honor of a lifetime. "I love this city. I'll always be here. I'm looking forward to watching Col. Sack fill the role and I'm very sure he can take the reigns with authority."