The Chapel Hill Police Department may have a new chief by the end of the month.
Assistant Police Chief Chris Blue, who was the second-highest ranked applicant for the job in 2007, is going through an assessment process for the job.
Current chief Brian Curran plans to retire next month. Curran has been chief since 2007. He hadn't applied for the job but was chosen after former Fayetteville Police Chief Tom McCarthy failed a physical with high blood pressure.
“A rigorous set of experiences and expectations has been established to assess Assistant Chief Blue’s skills in real time with real issues,” Town Manager Roger Stancil said.
Stancil informed the Town Council in June 2010 that he believed the best way to continue this momentum of progress in the department was to first consider internal candidates for the chief’s position. Internal candidates eligible to apply for the position were three captains and the two assistant chiefs. Blue was the only one to apply.
The town is assessing Blue based on criteria developed through community input sessions.