Chief 'no longer' on list for Cali job

(KXAN) - Austin Police Chief Art Acevedo was apparently a finalist for the chief job in Pasadena early Thursday - but as of late afternoon, "that is no longer the case," he told the Pasadena Star-News.

"I was under consideration for the job, but I am no longer an applicant," he told them.

The chief declined to confirm whether he had withdrawn his own name.

The report that he was even in the running to begin with shocked everyone from City Council members to the police union, and it started a firestorm of speculation about just how many places Acevedo was looking and whether he was still considering his hard run at leading the Dallas police department - a job for which he is, in fact, a confirmed finalist.

It drew the following comment from the chief himself, who came from Pasadena to Austin in 2007:

"I would like for everyone to know that I am not a finalist, and I am not in the process for this position."

That statement was technically true. At 5:39 p.m., when the statement came out, he was no longer a finalist, reporters in Pasadena said. 

The Pasadena paper staffers said they confirmed with the chief on Thursday afternoon that Acevedo was a finalist earlier in the day but wasn't not anymore.

Pasadena city officials declined to discuss names of their finalists with KXAN or with the Pasadena paper.

 

Acevedo remains on the short list to head the Dallas Police Department but insists he never applied for Pasadena, where he once lived while serving as assistant chief for the California Highway Patrol.

City leaders expressed surprise at the news reported by the Pasadena paper.

"I didn't know he was in the hunt for the Pasadena job," Mayor Lee Leffingwell said. "I'm very surprised."

Police union representatives also were surprised by the news. Wayne Vincent of the Austin Police Association said no one had a clue that "another market out there was trying to steal our chief."

Acevedo has said he really wants to work in a large, urban, metropolitan environment. And while Dallas fits that profile, Pasadena - home of the Rose Bowl in Los Angeles County and dotted with palm trees just a short drive from the beach - does not.

With a population of more than 150,000 at last count, Pasadena is considered a cultural center in the San Gabriel Valley and is the 6th largest city in that Southern California county.

Acevedo is the first Hispanic police chief in Austin and has served as the police chief since July 2007, arriving from Pasadena. He even had a song written about him in April 2009 to help fundraise for the Blue Santa program.

Acevedo said it wasn't his intention to leave Austin so soon, but Dallas contacted him. He put in his application in early March and got a call back the next day.

"Dallas is a bigger city that presents new challenges," he said. "Quite frankly, looking at that potential does appeal to me."

About a month ago, Austin tried in vain to keep him around - offering him a healthy salary hike to stay . Acevedo turned it down.

His statement on March 11 was:

"I am very appreciative of Manager Ott's generous public statement regarding my performance as police chief, and his salary adjustment proposal. As I have previously stated, my decision to compete for the Chief of Police job in Dallas, is not a reflection of dissatisfaction with my current salary or working conditions. I consider being the Chief of Police of the Austin Police Department, who I believe to be one of the greatest police departments in the Nation, a great privilege and highlight of my professional career. I want to assure you all, that my decision to remain in the Dallas process is solely based upon my desire to explore a career option and the challenge of working in a larger diverse urban environment. I consider the City of Dallas to be a fine city, with many opportunities to enjoy cultural, entertainment and sports venues. I know that many of my friends find it hard to believe that I would leave the City of Austin, however, having been raised in Los Angeles County, I truly find Dallas to be a very desirous place to work and live."