MINNEAPOLIS — Being a big city police chief has never been harder.
Finding someone who's willing and able to tackle that job in a tumultuous time in Minnesota's largest city is also a pretty tall order.
That's what Mayor Jacob Frey and other city leaders must now do in the wake of Chief Medaria "Rondo" Arradondo's decision to retire in January. The chief announced Monday he's going to step down after spending 32 years in a Minneapolis Police Department uniform.
"I have made the decision that I will not be accepting the new term as chief of the Minneapolis Police Department," Chief Arradondo, who was appointed to the post in 2017, told reporters.
Arrandondo, who grew up in Minneapolis, said he's not leaving for a job in another city. He said it just feels like the time is right for him and his family.
"Minneapolis’ success has never been about an individual. It’s about that which has been tried, tested and true — the collective good will, fierce determination and humanity of its people that has overcome our greatest challenges."
This comes at a time of rising violent crime in the city and across the nation, when the department's down 200 officers, mainly due to post traumatic stress disorder workers compensation claims stemming from the civil unrest that followed George Floyd's murder while in police custody.
The MPD is also facing a patterns and practices review by the United States Department of Justice because of the disproportionate use of force incidents in interactions with persons who identify as BIPOC — Black, Indigenous and People of Color.
It's against that backdrop that a national search will begin for a new chief.
"We want to make sure we get the best, most talented person, that is reform-minded, that is procedural-justice oriented, and wants to ensure the safety of every resident throughout our city," Mayor Frey told reporters.
He said he would name an interim chief in the next few days.
"You can't just wait, put an ad in the paper and hope people apply. You have to go after people. You have to go after people who are doing well in their job," Chuck Wexler of the Police Executive Research Forum in Washington D.C. told KARE.
PERF is a national law enforcement think tank that also develops policing policies and works directly with cities.
"You need someone who's a consensus builder. You need someone who gets along well with the community, and you need someone who can motivate internally," Wexler explained.
"Minneapolis has to develop a profile, talk to community members, talk to people from within the department, talk to business leaders and say, 'Where do you want the department to go in the next five years'?"
Arradondo was asked if he thought anyone would want to walk into the tumultuous situation the department's facing. He didn't hesitate.
"The question is, who would want this job? Every day I am blessed to walk into this office and walk around this city where men and women who wear this uniform are proud. They are proud to serve," Arradondo replied.
Even without the multiple crises Arradondo has dealt with in the past year and a half, the job of police chief is already very demanding. The city's top cop must balance the needs of communities, business groups, crime victims, his department, the police union, prosecutors, the mayor, the city council and others.
Wexler came here in the 1990s to work with the MPD after the city was tagged as "Murderapolis" — a nickname that came about in 1995, the year the city's homicide rate per 10,000 residents was significantly higher than New York City's rate.
"Minneapolis is a good town. I've known Chief Arradondo for 25 years. He’s really had his hands full the last couple of years. And he was able to get through some really difficult times, and to walk out with his head high."
Minneapolis will be searching for a new chief at the same time New York, Boston, Cleveland and Tucson are looking for people to head their departments. Here in Minnesota, the city of St. Paul is looking for someone to replace Chief Todd Axtell when he retires in June.
St. Paul has traditionally hired chiefs from within. Axtell is part of a long line of SPPD leaders who came from the department. Minneapolis has, in the past, hired chiefs from other cities.
Arradondo came from inside the department, as did his predecessors Janee Harteau in 2012 and Tim Dolan in 2006. But Robert Olson, who led the department from 1994 to 2002, came here from Yonkers, New York. And William McManus, who led the MPD from 2002 to 2006 was hired away from Dayton, Ohio.
"If they want to make a significant change they may go outside. At the same time, I've seen police chiefs come from inside who know the department, but also have the ability to be change agents," Wexler remarked.
He said, despite the narrative that's out there, it won't be impossible to fill the job with someone who is qualified and motivated.
"No, it's not impossible. People said that to us about Los Angeles about Bernard Parks' retirement. They said, 'No one can do this.' And you'd be surprised. People step up and they want the challenge. You just have to find the right person."