Perryville board to ask voters to change police chief selection process

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- The Perryville Board of Aldermen will ask voters in November to change the way the city selects its police chief.

Under state law, Perryville -- which is incorporated as a fourth-class city -- must elect a city marshal to serve as chief unless residents vote to let city leaders appoint a chief instead.

At a Tuesday night meeting, the board unanimously accepted an advisory committee's recommendation to ask voters to approve that change, Mayor Debbie Gahan said.

Twelve of the committee's 13 members recommended the city appoint a chief based on standards set forth by the Missouri Police Chiefs' Association, Gahan said.

Of the approximately 600 fourth-class cities in Missouri, 560 have switched from electing to appointing their chiefs, Perryville city administrator Brent Buerck said.

The board of aldermen appointed the advisory committee in May to research the city's options and make a recommendation about possible changes to the selection process after the resignation of former chief Keith Tarrillion.

In February, Tarrillion was accused of misconduct ranging from sexual harassment to misuse of funds. When the city released its investigation findings, it accused Tarrillion of improperly filing a police report on a property damage incident at his home. Tarrillion said he filled out part of the report, which was standard practice. He resigned in March under a memorandum of understanding that requires the city to pay his salary and benefits through the end of his term unless he finds other work or is convicted of a crime.

Because he was an elected official, the city could not remove him without formal impeachment proceedings.

"We truly did not have the ability to remove a person for cause," Gahan said.

In addition to giving the city more flexibility in hiring and firing, the change could help Perryville attract a better-qualified chief, Gahan said.

Committee chairman Skip Lottes said that was a major factor in the committee's recommendation.

"The main one was the qualifications that were required of the police chief in Perryville now. They were very much outdated," he said.

The current ordinance, which Buerck said is based on a state law written from the 1950s, requires only that the chief be at least 21 years old, live in the city for a year or more and have at least 120 hours of police training within six months of taking office.

In a city the size of Perryville, patrol officers are required to undergo five times that much training, Buerck said.

According to information furnished by Buerck, the Missouri Police Chiefs Association recommends a chief have a minimum of 10 years of law enforcement experience; supervisory experience at the rank of lieutenant or above; completion of advanced command staff or supervisory training; current Peace Officer Standard Training certification; and a bachelor's degree or comparable training and experience in law enforcement.

The city could simply raise the standards for candidates seeking election, but in a small city, such a move could dry up the pool of qualified candidates, Gahan said.

For the last 20 years, every candidate for chief has run unopposed, Buerck said.

Part of the reason for that is a city ordinance designed to prevent conflicts of interest, he said.

"If you're going to run for an elected position within the city, you have to take a voluntary leave of absence from your current position," Buerck said.

Despite the city's history of unopposed races, Lottes said the proposed change could be a "tough sell" to voters.

"We have a big job to convince the people of Perryville that this is the best way to go," he said.

In 2005, voters considered switching to an appointed chief but ultimately rejected the measure. At the time, then-city administrator Bill Lewis told the Southeast Missourian the city favored the change as a vote of confidence for Tarrillion.

Buerck said the idea also came before voters twice in the 1970s.

The board is expected to pass an ordinance next month to place the matter on the November ballot, Gahan said.

"This is going to take a lot of voter education," she said. "We want people to be comfortable with the idea of this and not to think we're taking something away from them. ... Even though they elected a chief before, it really wasn't a choice that they made; they've just said 'yes' to the one person that ran."

The committee suggested including residents in the selection process, possibly through the creation of a citizens' committee, Buerck said.

"There's different ways to get people involved and to get them a vote in the process, where for two decades, they haven't had a choice," he said.

If voters approve the measure, the board could begin searching for a new chief after the November election, Gahan said. If they reject it, Lt. Direk Hunt will continue to serve as interim chief until Tarrillion's term ends in April.

epriddy@semissourian.com

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215 N. West St., Perryville, Mo.