AKRON, Ohio — When Akron Police Chief Steve Mylett retired at the end of 2023, incoming Mayor Shammas Malik stated that the search for his replacement would be a wide one, "open to internal and external candidates." It seemed normal enough, and after all, Mylett himself had been hired out of Bellevue, Washington.
Then came a bit of a snag: In March, Malik announced that only internal candidates would be considered for the job, due to a clause in the city's charter that states such promotions should occur internally "wherever practicable." The mayor's office interprets that as preventing the hiring of an external chief.
For the moment, Malik will choose between eligible deputy chiefs, but none of them are minorities. At a community forum Tuesday night hosted by the Black Elected Officials of Summit County, plenty of residents shared their concerns.
"Police officers that have been on the force for all those years, how come they haven’t moved up to be in that position to be chosen as the chief?" One man asked. "That needs to change."
The mayor sat and listened to what was said, and acknowledged the desire from many for "a diverse candidate." But as he vows to press on with the search, some fear hiring from within the department will enable systematic problems that already exist.
"We all know there's inherent problems [with Akron police]," one woman said. "A kid got shot last week. There's very blatant issues going on here."
Others think the mayor should halt the hiring process, but while he agrees the charter isn't fair, he would rather voters change it on the November ballot. For now, he believes he has no choice but to hire a permanent chief.
"I cannot control how previous administrations interpreted the city charter," Malik told the crowd, referring to previous hirings like Mylett's. "I can only control how I will, and I will always, I will always act with fidelity to my understanding of the law, whether its popular or not popular."
Malik's administration will hold two town hall meetings on the chief search at Buchtel Community Learning Center on April 20 at 11 a.m. and April 23 at 6 p.m. Brian Harding will continue to lead the police department on an acting basis.