Dallas adds new police chief to list of critical city needs

The timeline for selecting a new police chief remains unclear, but some council members have indicated they want to choose a permanent city manager first.
“I think we need to settle on a permanent city manager who can then lead a national search for a police chief,” council member Paula Blackmon told The Dallas Morning News on Friday.
Interim City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert told The News a transition plan for a successor for Dallas police Chief Eddie García is still being determined.
Tolbert said she hasn’t named an interim police chief, and a final day has not been set for García’s exit from Dallas.
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“No, I have not made that decision and will hopefully have an opportunity to sit down with the chief next week to discuss transition,” Tolbert told The News via text.
Austin City Manager T.C. Broadnax announced Thursday that García would be leaving Dallas to become an assistant city manager overseeing public safety in the state’s capital starting Nov. 4.
The move rocked City Hall, with many of Dallas’ top leaders saying they first learned of García’s pending departure only after Austin announced it. Tolbert texted the Dallas City Council members Thursday after the announcement and said she wished it wasn’t the case.
“As you know, we received the news yesterday regarding Chief García’s departure to Austin,” Tolbert said in a weekly note to city staffers Friday. “I will update you at the appropriate time with our next steps.”
The City Council hired Baker Tilly, a search firm, to recruit the city’s new top executive. Council members have said they intend to name a successor before the end of the year.
Four months ago, the interim city manager and other city officials celebrated crafting a deal where García committed to remaining as police chief until at least 2027 with financial incentives, including a promise to boost his pay to ensure he remained the highest-paid police chief of Texas’ largest cities.
García, Dallas’ top cop since 2021 and the city’s first Latino police chief, made $306,440 a year. The deal also called for him to earn an extra $10,000 bonus every six months, but he will leave Dallas before collecting any additional money.
What changed since May was still unclear Friday.
Many City Council members and other city officials, like council public safety chair Cara Mendelsohn, have either declined to comment about García’s departure or not returned phone calls and texts, like Mayor Eric Johnson.
Sentiments from other officials who have spoken publicly ranged from disappointment to near betrayal but little to no answers.
“I am deeply disappointed in City Manager Broadnax that he would do that,” council member Jaynie Schultz told The News on Thursday. “But everybody is an adult, and they can make their own decisions and that includes Chief García.”
Johnson and Tolbert issued a joint statement Thursday praising García’s leadership and saying they would soon begin a search for a new chief.
Broadnax was Dallas’ previous city manager and left in May for Austin after seven years at the helm. He hired García, who told The News in February when Broadnax’s resignation was announced that he would “run through a wall” for Broadnax. Dallas’ former city manager also hired Tolbert as his chief of staff in 2017.
When former Dallas police Chief U. Reneé Hall resigned in December 2020 after three years, García and 35 other candidates applied during a national search for a replacement.
The city hired a search firm to screen candidates, and community groups, police associations and other groups interviewed finalists. They also participated in a public forum that featured questions from council members before a final interview with Broadnax.
Three of the seven candidates who participated in the December 2020 forum were internal candidates. García came to the city with more than 30 years of experience as a cop in San Jose, Calif., and had a steady rise in ranks to police chief before agreeing to lead Dallas’ police force.
His run as police chief has been one of the shorter stints in recent years.
David Brown was Dallas’ longest-serving police chief since the 1960s and led the department from 2010 to 2016. Before him was David Kunkle from 2004 to 2010 and then Terrell Bolton from 1999 to 2003. Ben Click served from 1993 to 1999, and William Rathburn from 1991 to 1993.
Rathburn resigned shortly after fights and looting broke out during a post-Super Bowl victory parade in downtown Dallas. Rathburn had been out of town at the time on a consulting job.