GRAND RAPIDS, Mich — Grand Rapids residents will have two chances to meet the finalists for the city's next police chief tonight at City Hall.
An informal meet-and-greet will take place at the Calder Plaza level of City Hall at 5:45 p.m., followed by a public forum in the Commission Chambers starting at 7:00 p.m. The 7:00 p.m. meeting will feature pre-submitted questions from the public to the candidates. If you can't make it in person, the meeting will air on the City of Grand Rapids Facebook and YouTube channels.
City Manager Mark Washington will take community feedback into consideration before making the hire.
There are 4 finalists for the job, which became open after former Chief Eric Winstrom left the position earlier in the year to take a job with the Pensacola Police Department in Florida.
The finalists are:
- Mark Bliss, deputy chief with the Detroit Police Department. He has spent more than 25 years in law enforcement and currently leads Detroit's crime strategies bureau. Bliss holds a master's degree in criminal justice.
- Rafael Diaz, captain with Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety. Current service history extends more than 27 years. He is also a licensed attorney. Diaz has led Kalamazoo's professional standards and criminal investigation divisions. He also plays a role with the Kalamazoo Valley Enforcement Team. Diaz served as a judge advocate in the Michigan National Guard.
- Eve Stephens, former chief of police for the University of Texas at Austin. She spent more than 25 years in law enforcement, including time as a commander with the Austin Police Department. She holds a Master of Public Safety from the University of Virginia.
Joseph Trigg, current deputy chief of police for Grand Rapids. He has been serving as interim chief since the departure of Chief Winstrom at the beginning of March. He's spent more than 25 years with the Grand Rapids Police Department, starting as a patrol officer and working his way up through the command structure.
Follow FOX 17: Facebook - X (formerly Twitter) - Instagram - YouTube
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
