New chief search narrowed to five

Deepa Bharath

And then there were five.

The search for a new police chief to replace retiring Chief Dave

Snowden has narrowed to five candidates after weeks of one-on-one

interviews, tests and panel discussions, officials said Monday.

City officials declined to divulge the names of the candidates

because it is a confidential search.

The race began in January with 37 people vying for the

high-profile job. City Manager Allan Roeder reduced that number to 12

and then to five, said Howard Perkins, the city’s personnel manager.

“That could be narrowed down to two or even one,” he said. “We

don’t know yet.”

Roeder will interview the five candidates in the next two weeks,

Perkins said. That will be followed by “extensive background checks,”

he said.

Snowden, who has been at the helm of the Costa Mesa Police

Department for 16 years, said he has been involved in the process at

Roeder’s request. The 59-year-old top cop has been retired since

June, but entered into an agreement with the city in which he will

continue working part-time, or 960 hours a year. His last day at work

will be June 13.

Snowden said on Monday that he has “met all of the candidates.”

“I’d say it was a good field of candidates,” he said. “I would

hope the city manager finds the person to do the job.”

Snowden declined to comment further. But the chief, who made

recommendations to Roeder, said he was looking for someone “who would

be the best for this city.”

“Someone who would be good to the community and last a long time,”

he said. “It was probably the same qualities my predecessor, Roger

Neth, looked for in the person who was to replace him.”

That said, Snowden added he did not believe Neth had anything to

do with his selection or the process in general.

Snowden said his longevity as chief was largely because he loved

his job and the community.

“I enjoyed a great rapport with my boss,” he said. “And I have a

true sense of good feeling for the community.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.