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Search begins for top cop
Three months after the retirement of long-standing Police Chief Dash Butler, Berkeley has formally begun its search for a replacement.
The city announced this week that it hired Roseville-based Bob Murray and Associates, an executive search firm, to conduct a nationwide hunt for the new chief.
“We’re looking for a person who has good experience with community policing and a long history of working in a diverse community,” said Arrietta Chakos, deputy city manager.
The search will take an estimated six months and require candidates to interview with city officials and residents.
The rigorous application process has become standard for top Berkeley jobs, said Chakos. “We take a very sophisticated approach, and the community expects no less,” she said.
The next chief will earn a salary between $119,784 and $164,609, according to an advertisement posted on the California Police Chief Association Web site.
Butler, who was promoted to chief from lieutenant in 1990, had the longest tenure of any police chief in Berkeley history.
Current Berkeley police officers can apply for the position. It is not known if interim Police Chief Roy Meisner plans to make himself a candidate. Meisner, a 30-year veteran of the Berkeley force, was deputy police chief under Butler.
