Burlington is relaunching its search for a new permanent police chief, Mayor Miro Weinberger announced Friday.
The city began an initial review of applications for the role in March 2020 but later postponed the search due to the pandemic. Jon Murad has served as the interim police chief since June 2020.
The city plans to appoint a search committee in June, composed of two city councilors, two police commissioners and up to seven other people. Interviews with prospective candidates are scheduled to begin in July.
“Our hope is to have a community-informed hiring process that fosters trust and creates a strong foundation for our public safety transformation,” Weinberger said in a news release Friday.
Over the past year and a half, the city has cycled through four police chiefs, some of whom departed amid scandal.
The previous permanent chief, Brandon del Pozo, resigned in December 2019 after revelations that he created an anonymous Twitter account to harass a local activist.
His planned successor, Jan Wright, also resigned after admitting that she too had used fake social media accounts to attack critics.
Then, in September 2020, former acting Chief Jennifer Morrison announced that she would not return to the role after taking leave for the summer, citing what she called the City Council’s “mismanagement” of the police department.
Murad has served in the interim chief position ever since.
For now, Burlington is seeking public input on the new hire. The city has put out a community survey and will hold forums on the issue at May Neighborhood Planning Assembly meetings.
The city is also taking applications from community members who wish to serve on the search committee.
After the July interviews, a final candidate is expected to be selected for council confirmation by late August or September.
