The candidate pool for Bryan's next police chief has been narrowed to three people, and all are current or former chiefs of police.
Johnnie Burch Jr., chief in Mount Pleasant; Eric Buske, chief of the Omaha, Neb., Police Department; and Bobby Whitmire, former interim chief in Bryan and College Station, are all being considered for the job.
City Manager David Watkins, who received 33 applications for the job, said he and a panel of residents would interview the three candidates through July 24.
Watkins said he would like to have a new chief named by September. The finalists were selected by Watkins and Assistant City Manager Hugh Walker.
"They have all been chiefs," Watkins said, "and I really, really feel strongly that I want somebody who has had the experience of being chief."
In recent years, the department has had several chiefs and interim chiefs, and that has hurt the organization, Watkins said.
"It's had an emotional toll on the department," he said. "The trials and tribulations of Chief [Ty] Morrow definitely have had an impact on the organization."
Brazos County Sheriff Chris Kirk, who is on the panel that will be interviewing the candidates, said he would look for someone who could continue strengthening relationships among area law enforcement agencies.
"We've been very fortunate to this point to have a great relationship at every level within our organizations," he said. "And I sure don't want to upset that apple cart."
All three of the finalists have extensive backgrounds in law enforcement.
Johnnie Burch Jr.
Burch started his law enforcement career 22 years ago with the Dallas County Sheriff's Department. He has also served with the DeSoto and Gatesville departments. He has been chief in Mount Pleasant since 2005.
Burch has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Dallas Baptist University and a master's in criminal justice administration from Sam Houston State University.
Mount Pleasant is a city of about 15,000 people in Northeast Texas, but Burch said the city's size doesn't make him any less qualified to lead the Bryan department.
"Being from the [Dallas-Fort Worth] metroplex, I'm used to bigger cities," he said. "Bryan is the type of department I'm very interested in. When I took the job as chief [in Mount Pleasant], that was my goal, moving to a larger department."
Burch said that he understood the concerns of some residents about hiring an outsider but that the department would be a good fit for him.
"From a competitive perspective, I can say A&M fans and me have the same rival in the University of Texas. My money and family went to OU," he said chuckling. "And I can say this, it'd be an honor to work around those fine men and women in law enforcement."
Eric Buske
This is the second time Buske has been considered for the chief post in Bryan. He was a finalist during the 2007 search that ended with the selection of Morrow. Watkins said he had not maintained contact with Buske but that Buske had kept his eye on the Bryan job.
"Eric has a wonderful background," Watkins said. "He's a very impressive, smart guy who spent a considerable amount of time here for the last interviews."
Buske has spent all of his 25 years in law enforcement with the Omaha department. He has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Bellevue University and a master's in public administration from the University of Nebraska.
Omaha is about six times the size of Bryan.
Watkins cited Buske's handling of the December 2007 mall shooting in Omaha in which nine people, including the gunman, were killed, as an example of Buske's qualifications.
"I'll be taking a hard look at him," he said.
Buske declined an interview request for this story but released a statement saying he and his wife "are interested in pursuing this new opportunity."
Bobby Whitmire
Whitmire is familiar with both Bryan and College Station. He has served as interim chief in both cities and was a finalist for the chief position in College Station during the 2008 search in which Michael Ikner was selected.
He said his knowledge of the area and experience with both departments would make for a smooth transition.
"Obviously, I have more of an insight into the department and the citizens," he said. "Just serving in the interim for 8 1/2 months and being a part of the community, you get to know people's names and what they do, and I'm not going to need a year to get to know everyone."
He said he already had established good relationships with the Sheriff's Department and the District Attorney's Office.
"Knowing the department like I do," he said, "I know there are some really great people there. They really haven't had the guidance they need over the past few years, and in my experience as chief for many years, I believe I can do that."
Whitmire started his career in law enforcement in 1969 with the Fort Worth Police Department. He has also worked as an officer at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport and as an arson investigator in Cleburne. In Watauga, he served as public safety director, interim city manager and assistant city manager. He has been a chief of police in Midlothian and Waxahachie. He also served as a fraud investigations manager for Southwestern Bell.
He holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Dallas Baptist University and a master's in interdisciplinary studies from the University of North Texas.
Watkins said the department had several promising young officers who needed leadership to progress to the next level.
"We have a lot of really good people in this department," he said. "But we haven't really had enough stability to groom them and set up a succession plan. It's hard to do that when you've had six chiefs in six or seven years. I want a veteran who can come in and help grow and mentor this program."
The new chief will be responsible for leading 103 officers, 40 civilians, 20 sergeants and six lieutenants.
The salary will depend on qualifications. Morrow earned about $122,000 a year plus benefits before resigning in June, nearly seven months after police responded to a family violence call at his home.
Deputy Chief Peter Scheets is serving as interim chief until Morrow's replacement is hired. He applied for the chief's job but is not a finalist.
Jim Stewart, a retired Army officer and lieutenant in the Bryan police reserves who was one of three finalists during the 2007 search, also applied for the job.
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