Fairfield Twp. police chief among nearly 30 seeking Springfield chief role

Sydney Dawes, Journal-News, Hamilton, Ohio
·2 min read

Nov. 1—Springfield is a step closer to selecting its next police chief, with nearly 30 applications for the job rolling in this month — including one from Butler County.

Fairfield Twp. Chief of Police Robert Chabali has applied. There were 29 applications submitted for the Springfield position by the Friday deadline.

Chabali retired in 2015 as the Dayton Police Department's assistant chief and was sworn in as the township's police chief in July 2017.

The City of Springfield posted the official job opening in late September, following the announcement that Chief Lee Graf would retire at the end of the year.

The list of applicants includes five employees of the Springfield Police Division: — Allison Elliott, captain — Michael Kranz, captain — James Hall, sergeant — Jason Via, sergeant — Thomas Zawada, captain

Numerous external candidates also applied for the position: — Summer Anthony, teacher, Columbus City Schools — Mark Arendt, lieutenant, Five Rivers MetroParks Ranger Division — Timothy Becker, deputy chief, Columbus Police Division — Edward Buckman, investigator, Chattanooga Police Department, Tenn. — Robert Chabali, chief, Fairfield Township Police Department — Elliott Forge, lieutenant, Dallas Police Department, Texas — Christopher Hammann, chief, city of New Haven, Mo. — James Hughes, chief, Maricopa Police Department, Ariz. — Brian Johns, major, Dayton Police Department — Jay Johnstone, records section commander, Cincinnati Police Department — Jennifer Knight, deputy chief, Columbus Police Division — Tonina Lamanna, K9 and school resource officer and community relations liaison, Camden Police Department — Daniel Mason, major, Trumbull County Sheriff's Office — Dejon Morris, officer, Jersey City Police Department, N.J. — Marc Paugh, program protection specialist, U.S. Air Force — Donald Pezzuto, deputy, Will County Sheriff's Office, Ill. — Thomas Quinlan, deputy chief, Columbus Police Division — Daniel Shook, fire marshal, City of Bay City, Texas — Bongiwe Emelda Sithole, director, Visionto Company — Brandon Standley, chief, Bellefontaine Police Department — Clayton Staton, director of campus safety and security, University of Tulsa, Okla. — Michael Varner, public safety officer, Dayton Children's Hospital — Ray Walters, railroad employee, Indiana and Ohio Railroad — Kelly Weiner, deputy chief, Columbus Police Division

The city of Springfield has employed a local government consulting firm, Baker Tilly — formerly known as Management Partners — to assist with recruiting. After gathering input from staff and community partners, the firm launched a nationwide search for applicants, including internal submissions.

Baker Tilly collected the applications, which will then be turned over to City Manager Bryan Heck. Those candidates will be reviewed and interviewed by city officials and will then be moved to an assessment center process conducted by the consultant. The next police chief will be selected by Heck and affirmed by the City Commission, according to a city statement.