Retiring CMPD Chief Rodney Monroe met with reporters Tuesday to talk about his decision to step down July 1.
Chief Monroe said he’s been thinking about retiring for several months, but he made the final decision over the weekend. He says being police chief is a tough job that takes a lot of energy.
"People say, well, you know, you can slow down and you can pass [on] more things…that’s not me. And, I believe that if I can’t do it at the level that I expect of myself, then that time has probably come," Monroe said.
He says the city and the police department are ready and prepared for the transition and that he’d like to see his job offered first to an internal candidate. He pointed out that three of his five deputy chiefs have recently been finalists for police chief jobs in other cities. A city press releases indicated that someone from CMPD may indeed be taking over for Monroe. Information regarding his replacement is expected later this week.
As for Monroe, he confirmed he’s had several job offers in the last few months. He said he isn’t taking any of those, but he didn’t rule out taking another job. He didn’t elaborate, other than to say he won’t be a police chief again.
"Something could happen next week, something could happen 6 months from now, so I’m not putting a time period on what that looks like, either," he said.
Monroe is 58 and has been CMPD chief for 7 years.
