Brett Hibbs was named interim chief of the Jacksonville Police Department on Wednesday, becoming the fifth person to head the department since 2017.
According to a news release from Mayor Bob Johnson, Hibbs, who was a lieutenant on the force, will replace Joseph McCollough, who was named interim chief in November. McCullough will stay with the department as a captain.
Hibbs, 50, is a 25-year veteran of the department and a graduate of the FBI national academy, the release said.
Johnson said Wednesday that he has been looking at hiring from within the department, at the suggestion of retired high-level law enforcement officials. He said he is confident that Hibbs is the selection that is best for the city.
"I've kind of looked at everybody over there, and, Lt. Hibbs, his father was police chief for 10 or 11 years here," Johnson said. "And he's kind of done everything in the department."
Within the past three years, the department has hired from outside twice for leaders.
Geoffrey Herweg, who was hired in the spring of 2017, was removed from the job after it was discovered that he lied to police in Texas about a vehicle crash that damaged a car and a house in 2000.
City Attorney Robert Bamburg was appointed the director of the department by then-Mayor Gary Fletcher but was sued by Jacksonville officers who argued that he was holding the position illegally.
John Franklin, who was from Chicago, was subsequently hired by Fletcher but was asked to resign by Johnson, who was elected shortly after Franklin's hiring.
Since Franklin's departure, the department has been run by McCollough, who received praise from Johnson and other city officials upon being put in the position.
McCollough, too, had held many positions in the department before getting the interim chief position.
The Police Department was "not progressing and heading in the direction to serve the citizen of Jacksonville at the level they deserve," Johnson said in the release. But McCollough also received praise from Johnson.
"He's a good guy. He kept me very informed," Johnson said. "[It] just wasn't headed in the direction I wanted it to head."
Johnson intends to work with Hibbs for the next four to seven months before deciding whether to remove the interim title, he said.
Some City Council members said they are upset with how long the process of selecting a new chief has taken. Ward 5 Council Member Tara Smith said she is disappointed in how the mayor has handled the search for a new chief.
"As a City Council member, I'm disappointed in Mayor Johnson's leadership and his inability to select a full-time police chief for the Jacksonville Police Department," Smith said.
Smith filed a lawsuit in 2018 that led to Herweg's removal.
"Since I did that, the Police Department has been in turmoil," Smith said. "And this only continues the turmoil. Unfortunately, we thought that a new mayor would fix the problems with the Police Department, but he's created more."
Ward 2 Council Member Gary Sipes echoed some of Smith's concerns with the process.
"I've spoken with Mayor Johnson about it, and there needs to be some stability in the [Police Department]," Sipes said. "It's been long overdue. We're gonna have to have a full-time chief, and that's what I told him."
Johnson admitted it has taken longer to come to a decision, but he said that is because of the recovery from a surgery that put him on limited duty for most of January.
"[On] Dec. 17, I had my knee replaced, and that recovery took longer," Johnson said. "About the time I'm ready to make that change, covid-19 started happening."
Johnson's plan with Hibbs is the same as with McCollough: to give him a trial period and see what he can do.
"We're going to work together," Johnson said. "I need a team player with not just me, but with all my directors. We need to lean on each other for advice and help. ... All of us should be working together as a team, and he gets that concept."
Metro on 05/28/2020