The City of Durham has been through a tumultuous time in the past few years as several incidents brought about community unrest and led to the retirement of Chief Jose Lopez at the end of 2015.
City manager Tom Bonfiled, following a three-month search for a replacement for Lopez, has announced two finalists for the position.
Bonfield said in a release:
“The search has been a very deliberate process to recruit and identify the very best person to be Durham’s next Chief of Police, and I’m confident that we’ve selected two extremely strong and capable candidates. I look forward to introducing them and receiving public feedback as the next step of this process.”
The search process led to two candidates being named as finalists; Deputy Chief Cerelyn J. Davis, who has serves in the City of Atlanta Police Department, and Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department Major Michael J. Smathers.
Davis has held ranks of patrol officer, detective and sergeant before serving as deputy chief in Atlanta over her 28-year career.
A release says Smathers has served in almost every section and division in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department and currently oversees the estimated 315 officers in the field services group.
Bonfield said in the release that each candidate has extensive and successful law enforcement careers, demonstrating great leadership and perseverance.
Bonfield said both candidates “demonstrated a commitment to police professionalism, transparency, accountability, and a positive relationship with the communities they serve.”
Pointing to each candidate’s perseverance, the release stated that Davis was exonerated after being discharged in 2008 when she was falsely accused of a cover up during a scandal in the department. Smathers recommended that an officer be charged after the fatal shooting of Jonathan Ferrell by a white police officer in Charlotte in 2013.
Community members can meet with the candidates at a moderated forum on Wednesday night from seven to eight o’clock in Durham City Hall Council Chambers.
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