Residents, community members invited to attend and share feedback to help select Somerville’s next Chief of Police

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne and Somerville Police Chief Search Committee are inviting all community members to attend public interview sessions with candidates under consideration to be the next Chief of Police for the City of Somerville on Thursday, May 9, 2024. All interviews will take place in-person at Somerville City Hall (93 Highland Ave.) between 8:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m., with a final schedule to be shared with the community in the coming days. 

In advance of the public interviews, candidate bios will be shared with the community on Friday, April 26, on the City of Somerville website: somervillema.gov/policechief.

Community input is a vital part of this process, and interview attendees are encouraged to share their opinions on the interviews via a community feedback form. The link will go live on the morning of Thursday, May 9, and feedback will be accepted through Thursday, May 16 at 5 p.m. 

The interviews will be broadcast live on City TV (channel 22 on Comcast and channel 13 on RCN). Live closed captioning will be available on the online streaming video of the hearing. Rebroadcasts of the hearing on City TV will include closed captioning.

After the public hearing, Mayor Ballantyne will review the submitted community feedback to inform her interviews with the candidates and make a final decision. 

Background on Somerville’s Police Chief Search Process

Somerville Chief of Police David Fallon retired from the Somerville Police force in December 2020 after 21 years of service. Chief Charles Femino accepted the role of Acting Chief at that time taking on pandemic public safety emergency response duties as well as the ongoing work of the department. 

Somerville established a Police Chief Search Committee, consisting of constituents, subject matter experts, local elected officials, and City staff, to lead the community driven search. In February 2023, the City selected GovHR to lead the nationwide search to identify candidates with the requisite experience and principles to lead SPD. The firm has over 30 years of experience recruiting for leadership positions in the public-sector and shares Somerville’s commitment to equity, diversity, and accessibility. GovHR has successfully recruited for almost 80 Chief of Police roles in 14 states.  

For more information on the Police Chief Selection Committee and process, please email ChiefSearch@somervillema.gov.