Minneapolis police chief Arradondo a finalist for chief job in California
Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo is on a shortlist of candidates in the running to be the chief of police in San Jose, California.
According to City of San Jose documents, Arradondo is among six finalists for the job, down from an applicant pool of 18. Four of the other finalists are from the San Jose Police Department; Arradondo is the only out-of-state candidate.
Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) spokesperson John Elder told Bring Me The News a recruiter submitted Arradondo's resume to the City of San Jose, adding that he has not been "actively seeking employment" outside of the MPD.
In a prepared statement, Elder said Arradondo hasn't had any "formal discussions" with city officials in San Jose, adding that this isn't the first time a city has been interested in Arradondo to lead their respective police departments.
“While humbled and honored for their interest and awareness of the positive, nationally recognized work of MPD sworn and civilian members over the years, Chief Arradondo remains committed to the public safety of the residents and businesses of Minneapolis and continuing the important MPD transformational change in the spirit of healing and moving our city forward in collaboration with our communities," Elder said.
Arradondo has been the chief of the MPD for nearly four years. In the past year, he's faced numerous challenges including the civil unrest following four of his now-former officers' involvement in the death of George Floyd, an increase in violent crime, an influx of police officers leaving the department, and City Council members who are pushing to dismantle the police department altogether, which is continuing this year with a potential ballot question.
San Jose city documents show it will host a police chief candidate forum on Jan. 30, which is the next stage in the recruitment process. Community panel interviews will be held the week of Feb. 1. There is no set date on when the city plans to announce its hiring decision.
