Week in Review : MAJOR EVENTS, IMAGES AND PEOPLE IN ORANGE COUNTY NEWS : MISCELLANY / NEWSMAKERS AND MILESTONES
Huntington Beach searched nationwide for a new police chief, but the city ended coming back home to make its selection.
Police Capt. Grover L. (Bill) Payne, 52, will replace Chief Earle Robitaille, authorities announced Wednesday. The City Council is expected to officially approve Payne’s appointment during its regular Monday night meeting.
Robitaille announced recently that he will retire April 17 after 24 years with the department.
A city spokeswoman said his departure was unrelated to recent filings of lawsuits that name Robitaille, accusing the Police Department of brutality.
On Tuesday, four men and a juvenile who claim they were tortured by Huntington Beach police with electronic devices called stun guns filed a $25-million federal civil rights lawsuit.
Payne, who has been with the department longer than any other officer, was praised by City Administrator Charles W. Thompson for “his humaneness and his ability to relate and communicate with people.”
“I don’t think you realize how good your own people are until you are comparing them with other people from other departments,” Thompson said. “ . . . And I didn’t go into it with the idea of taking someone from within.”
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