Louisville Mayor Greg Fisher Appoints Steve Conrad Police Chief. We Applaud The Mayor's Move To Bring In Someone With An "Outsider's Perspective".

Steve Conrad named new Louisville police chief

Stats.:
Age: 55
Currently: Chief, Glendale, Ariz. Police Department
Experience: 1980, joined the former Louisville Police Department; 1997, named assistant police chief, retaining that role under the newly merged metro department; 2005, named chief in Glendale.
Education: Bachelor’s degree in police administration; master’s degree in community development, University of Louisville
Personal: Married, one daughter.

Steve Conrad, a former Louisville police officer and most recently chief of the Glendale, Ariz., police department, has been named the next chief of Louisville Metro Police.

He begins his Louisville duties March 19. His salary will be $165,000.

The announcement by Mayor Greg Fischer Tuesday morning ends a three-month process to replace Chief Robert White, who left Louisville in December to take the chief’s job with the Denver Police.

“Steve has a deep knowledge of Louisville, its neighborhoods, people and history, but he also has an outsider’s perspective, having left this hometown to serve as chief in Glendale,” Fischer said in a press release.

In the same release, Conrad said: “I couldn’t be more excited about this opportunity to lead the Louisville Metro Police Department. It is an incredible organization filled with men and women who are willing to do what it takes to make our community safe.

“I am truly honored to have the opportunity to work with them again.”

Conrad joined the former city department as a patrol officer in 1980 and rose through the ranks to become assistant chief under White.

Conrad worked closely with White when he arrived in January 2003 and immediately had to deal with merger of the Louisville and Jefferson County departments.

Conrad left Louisville in 2005 to lead the Glendale department, managing the yearly Fiesta Bowl and the 2008 Super Bowl.

Conrad met with command staff Tuesday morning before Fischer’s announcement and was to visit all eight of the city’s patrol divisions to meet with commanders and officers after the press conference.

Conrad was chosen from a slate of five candidates who were interviewed by the mayor the week of Feb. 6. The five finalists included the deputy chiefs, Yvette Gentry and Vince Robison.

Two of the candidates are chiefs in other districts but formerly served with either the city or county department. They are Jeffersontown Chief Rick Sanders and Conrad.

The other candidate, Glenn Skeens, has had a long career with the Owensboro Police Department, where he now serves as police chief.

Sixteen candidates applied for the position and were screened through the Southern Police Institute at the University of Louisville, which conducted the search. The field was narrowed to 11 candidates who were interviewed by a panel and then winnowed to five finalists.

Fischer said that he wanted a candidate with strong Louisville ties to take the position.

Ishmon Burks, a criminal justice professor and former Kentucky State Police commissioner, has been serving as the interim police chief since White left. He is set to take over, at least temporarily, for the retiring Bill Summers, who serves as the chief administrative officer for Fischer.