Chattanooga Mayor Andy Berke announced Friday David Roddy, the man who has been acting police chief for the past month, is his pick to permanently fill the spot.
Berke chose Roddy over Assistant Chief Edwin McPherson, another member of the Chattanooga Police Department’s senior administration, and Capt. Todd Chamberlain of the Los Angeles Police Department.
All three men were finalists submitted to Berke by a five-person search committee that whittled down a list of 49 applicants from across the country. Six of those applications came from people employed with the department.
“As I thought about what we wanted in a police chief, I thought we needed somebody who’s worthy, who’s worthy of the people who do this,” Berke said during the Friday news conference.
“We need somebody who is there to help inspire these officers every single night as they risk their lives on behalf of our community and the people they serve,” he added.