Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, May 9, 1990 TAG: 9005090682
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-1 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: VICTORIA RATCLIFF STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
County Administrator Elmer Hodge said Tuesday that he had picked three finalists from among nine candidates who were interviewed last week for the position of chief.
Hodge said that of the three, John Cease, chief of police, Morgantown, W.Va.; and Hal Robbins, deputy police chief in St. Petersburg, Fla., are in the lead. Gary Konzak, chief of police in LaGrange, Ill., is close behind, Hodge said.
Assistant County Administrator Don Myers said today that the new chief would have a year to take the basic criminal justice courses to become state-certified, and that county officials do not envision any problems hiring a chief from out of state.
The state Department of Criminal Justice Services decides how many hours of training an out-of-state officer needs to become state-certified after reviewing the training those officers already have received, Myers said.
Because of the extensive training all of the finalists have received, county officials expect that the new chief will have to take only 60 to 90 hours of the 400-hour basic law enforcement training, he said.
But Bill Mayo, director of the regional Cardinal Criminal Justice Academy in Salem, said last week that a new chief hired from out of state might have to take up to 240 hours of the 10-week basic academy.
An out-of-state chief could challenge the system, but he would have to score 100 percent on every basic exam and practical exam to receive his certification, Mayo said. He said he is not aware of anyone who has successfully challenged the system.
The new chief may apply to the Department of Criminal Justice Services for waivers of certain portions of the basic academy, Mayo said. Depending on the schools he had attended, the amount of training he had received, and how up-to-date the training is, a portion of the basic training probably would be waived, he said.
But even with the waiver, the new chief would be required to take all of the "protection of life" courses and courses on procedures that are unique to Virginia, he said.
For example, a new chief probably would have to take basic courses in firearms training; defensive tactics; arrest procedures and techniques; parole procedures; search, seizure and evidence procedures; Virginia law; juvenile matters in Virginia; and traffic control and enforcement in Virginia, Mayo said. If the new chief did not have a valid CPR and first aid certificate, he also would have to receive that training, Mayo said.
Those courses involve about 240 hours of training, he said.
Hodge said Tuesday that the three finalists all scored well in an assessment conducted last week by the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and all were unanimously recommended by Hodge's advisory committee. That committee is made up of the chiefs of police from Roanoke, Salem and Vinton, the county fire chief and county commonwealth's attorney.
Hodge said he is negotiating with his three top finalists this week and hopes to make a selection early next week.
"I'm trying to match the needs of the community with the three candidates," he said.
All nine applicants who were interviewed last week "are still viable candidates," Hodge said. "All can do an outstanding job." Ten candidates originally showed up for the interview process, but one had to drop out because of an illness in his family.
If for some reason Hodge is unable to come to an agreement with any of the top three candidates for the chief's position, he will go back to his advisory committee and re-evaluate the remaining candidates, he said.
"The chiefs committee has played and will continue to play a valuable role in the selection process," he said.
Ray Lavinder, a lieutenant in the county Sheriff's Department who was the only local candidate among the top 10 finalists, is among Hodge's top five candidates for the job. Lavinder supervises the criminal investigations division in the Sheriff's Department.
The finalists for the job were chosen from about 150 applicants.
Cease has been police chief in Morgantown since 1983 and began his career as a patrol officer in the Midwest. He has served as director of public safety for a large university and has a master's degree in criminal justice administration from Michigan State University. His department includes 48 sworn officers and 12 civilians.
Robbins began his career as a patrolman in St. Petersburg in 1972 and currently heads up all investigative functions for the department. He is responsible for a budget of more than $7 million and a staff of 140 people. He has a master's degree in criminal justice from the University of South Florida.
Konzak began his career as a police cadet at the LaGrange Police Department in 1968 and worked his way up to the position of chief. His department has a staff of 39 full-time employees. He has a master's degree in law enforcement administration.
County residents voted in November to take law enforcement duties away from an elected sheriff and create a police department that would be under the supervision of the county administrator. The vote appeared to support the contention of the Board of Supervisors that citizens were unhappy with Sheriff Mike Kavanaugh's performance in the two years he had been sheriff.
The police department is scheduled to begin operating July 1.
***CORRECTION***
Published correction ran on May 10, 1990 in metro edition.\ Clarification
A story in Thursday's editions about candidates for Roanoke County police chief quoted Bill Mayo, director of the regional Cardinal Criminal Justice Academy in Salem, as saying that he was not aware of an out-of-state police officer who had successfully challenged the Virginia law enforcement certification program by scoring 100 percent on every basic exam and practical exam.
Mayo actually is aware of one person who successfully challenged the system. That person, however, did not score 100 percent on every basic exam and practical exam the first time he took them. He was allowed, under academy regulations, to take tests again in an effort to score 100 percent, Mayo said.
Memo: correction