Following two days of interviews last week, Bellevue City Manager Brad Miyake – having promised a quick turnaround – has chosen Stephen Mylett to be the city’s next police chief, according to an early morning news release.

Currently chief of police in Southlake, Texas, Mylett was one of four finalists  tapped by the Police Executive Research Firm in the city’s second-round search for a new chief, following Linda Pillo’s retirement last April. Miyake passed up on four candidates for the position in November, after hiring the Mercer Group to conduct the first search for $21,000; a fifth candidate declined an offer to continue the hiring process.

Mylett served 23 years with the Corpus Christi Police before joining the Southlake PD as chief in 2011. Mylett also spent six years as a security police officer for the Air Force. He will join the Bellevue Police in April, pending completion of further background checks and an on-site visit and interview with Miyake and interim Police Chief Jim Montgomery planned for later this week.

While most second-round candidates showed up for interviews, panels and a meet-and-greets Thursday and Friday, Mylett said Thursday he arrived in Bellevue earlier in the week to familiarize himself with the city.

The city highlights a 30-percent decline in property crimes in Southlake, Texas, since Mylett joined the force there; property crime has become a growing concern in Bellevue.

Mylett will also be charged with leading the police department under a city diversity initiative that calls for the city’s workforce to better reflect the population it serves. The Bellevue Police Department is more than 80 percent white men.

According to 2010 U.S. Census data, Southlake is more than 88 percent white and about 6.2 percent Asian with a population of 28,234,  while Bellevue – at a population of 133,992 – is 59 percent white and nearly 28 percent Asian. Forbes.com named Southlake the most affluent neighborhood in the United States in 2008, the median household income at $172,951, compared to $90,333 in Bellevue.

Original Story

Bellevue City Manager Brad Miyake said he plans to move quickly in making his decision as to which of the four police chief finalists selected by an independent recruiter will wear the badge.

The finalists were picked from across the country by the Police Executive Research Firm, which specializes in targeted searches for police command staff. Miyake passed up on four candidates for the position in November, after hiring the Mercer Group to conduct the first search for $21,000. Finalist Matt Clark from Minneapolis pulled his name from consideration after the city approached him about taking next steps toward being hired.

“No doubt they represent some of the finest in the nation,” Miyake said of the four second-round finalists, who fielded questions during a press conference Thursday before a meet-and-greet with the public that night. Two of the four finalists had applied for the job during the first hiring search last year.

None of the candidates are from the Puget Sound region. Interim Police Chief Jim Montgomery told the Reporter Thursday he had questioned more than a dozen police chiefs in the area whether they were interested in the position, but the salary — around $175,000 — was too similar to what they make now to encourage them to apply.

Candidates were asked questions about dealing with an ever diversifying population when the police force is comprised mostly of white men, improving the department’s public image and how to ensure an effective police presence across Bellevue neighborhoods.

Chuck Miiler, assistant chief of the Phoenix Police Department, said the police department should reflect the community it serves and provide more outreach to ensure trust.

“I believe that the officers are the best recruiters in the field,” said Stephen Mylett, chief of police in Southlake, Texas. He said the BPD’s lack of diversity doesn’t seem intentional, just the city catching up with the growth it’s experiencing. Mylett is also a finalist for police chief in McKinney, Texas, which used the Mercer Group to find its five candidates.

Mylett spoke openly Thursday about a discrimination lawsuit he filed a decade ago while on the Corpus Christi police force, alleging racial discrimination by the former police chief there because of negative testimony Mylett gave about him during another officer’s civil rights trial. Mylett said Thursday he filed the lawsuit due to a systemic issue within the Corpus Christi department and to protect his integrity as it had come under question. The U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s opinion that Mylett failed to make a case for discrimination or retaliation.

The Bellevue Police Department is still marked by a number of officer-involved incidents that came to light over the past two years, including an off-duty officer who was charged with DUI after being let off the hook during a traffic stop in 2013, which resulted in his resignation and the lenient officer being fired. Last October, Montgomery fired a lieutenant with 19 years on the force for falsifying worker’s compensation documents.

Finalist Gary Yamashiroya, division commander for the Chicago Police Department, said he would look at the culture within the department to see if a problem exists there. He said disciplinary actions should used when correcting an officer’s behavior. He and Drew Tracy, former assistant chief for the Montgomery County Police Department in Maryland, are the two finalists who were passed up during the first search.

Tracy said he’s dealt with a community losing trust in a police force, possibly referring to the D.C.-area sniper case in 2002, which left 10 people dead in the nation’s capitol, Maryland and Virginia. He said Thursday a new police chief signifies expected change in the department, adding transparency with the community and local media is important.

“If we do something where we step in it, we need to own it,” Mylett added.

Yamashiroya said a community panel — one of several panels involved in interviewing the candidates — highlighted the need for an increased police presence in Bellevue neighborhoods. Rather than foot patrols, Yamashiroya said he favored bike cops.

Tracy said its important for a department to be constantly looking at service levels around the city and readjusting quickly.

“We don’t wait for an annual report,” he said.

Mylett and Miiler both said crime data is best for strategizing where police are needed most.