Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle tapped deputy police chief Alex Hayes today to serve as acting chief while the city seeks a replacement for Eric Buske.
Hayes, 45, said he will seek the job on a permanent basis. He was a candidate for the job when Buske was named.
“The search process for a permanent chief will begin immediately and will be kept internal to the department,” Suttle said. “The goal I have set is to have the list of candidates narrowed ... in early January.”
Hayes joined the department in November 1986 and will have served 23 years in November. He has been a deputy chief since 2008 and will be the department's second black chief.
Hayes thanked the mayor for giving him the opportunity to lead the department and Buske for his friendship and mentoring. He said he plans to continue the momentum the department has experienced in the last year and a half, particularly in regards to neighborhoods.
“I'll keep moving forward, making strides,” Hayes said.
Hayes said one of his first priorities is to reach out to the department's rank and file. He said he'd like to have the job long-term and said it was important to have continuity within the department.
Buske, 47, has served as Omaha's police chief for a little more than a year. His last day on the job will be Thursday, 25 years to the day since he started in the department. He has accepted a job as chief of police in Bryan, Texas.
If the recent past is any indicator, Hayes could be the leading candidate for the job on a permanent basis. Buske was named interim chief in January 2008 after Warren's retirement.
In Omaha, Buske's salary is $130,658. He will be able to retire with full pension benefits equal to about 75 percent of his current salary, or around $98,000 a year.
Suttle said Hayes' salary would be in line with what Buske was making.
Buske has said his pension and the likelihood that it would be reduced under a new contract played a role in his decision. In 2004, in exchange for a wage freeze, then-Mayor Mike Fahey negotiated pension packages with police and firefighters that reduced their retirement age and increased their pension payments. The idea, Fahey has said, was to avert a tax hike.
Buske said Hayes' was an excellent choice and added there are a number of people within in the department who could do the job.
Police union president Aaron Hanson said Suttle had a tough choice but made a good selection in Hayes, who he called a well-rounded person.
The department's other deputy chiefs, all of whom could be candidates for the top job, are Dave Baker, Mary Newman and M. Elizabeth “Libby” Davis.
Copyright ©2012 Omaha World-Herald®. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, displayed or redistributed for any purpose without permission from the Omaha World-Herald.
