ARLINGTON, Texas — In the search for the next head of its police department, the City of Arlington has narrowed its pool of candidates to 10 people.

What You Need To Know

  • Former Arlington Police Chief Will Johnson announced his retirement in May

  • The search started in June and has been narrowed down to 10 candidates

  • Four of the remaining candidates are current members of the Arlington Police Department, including interim chief Kevin Kolbye

  • The City of Arlington will announce the new chief in late October or early November

The search for a new chief started in June after Will Johnson announced his retirement earlier this year, and 74 people threw their hats into the ring at the beginning of the process. Of the remaining candidates, four are currently part of the Arlington Police Department, including: Kevin Kolbye, the assistant police chief who is also serving as interim chief; Tarrick McGuire, deputy police chief; Jamie Ayala, assistant police chief of the support operations bureau; and Osbaldo Flores, deputy chief of field operations.

The other candidates are:

  • Alexander Jones, police colonel of the Baltimore County Police Department
  • Charles Ramirez, support bureau assistant chief of the Fort Worth Police Department
  • Derrick Wood, southwest division inspector of the Philadelphia Police Department
  • Jason Lando, investigations branch/narcotics and vice commander of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police
  • Joseph Gramaglia, operations/homeland security deputy police commissioner of the Buffalo Police Department
  • Perry Tarrant, chief operating officer and partner of Tri-9 Solutions LLC

Arlington is moving into the semi-final stage of the search process for the new chief. The final phase of the process will begin in mid-October, with the final selection by the end of October or early November.

“We cast a wide net when we started the search for Arlington’s next police chief, and I’m pleased that our search has led to a strong, diverse group of police leaders from around the country and at home for us to consider,” Trey Yelverton, city manager, said in a statement. “As we start the next round of interviews, we look forward to involving our stakeholders in a purposeful way to help us be better informed about the community’s interest in this important position.”

Arlington, like many cities across the country, is searching for its next police chief during a national reckoning of policing practices in relation to communities of color. In Dallas, Chief U. Renee Hall announced her resignation last month amidst controversy over how her department handled Black Lives Matter protests in the summer, while chiefs in Rochester, Portland, Atlanta, and Louisville have also stepped down in the wake of members of their departments shooting unarmed Black people.