Grand Forks’ new police chief could be identified next week, city HR director says – Grand Forks Herald

GRAND FORKS – Five finalists for the open position of Grand Forks Police Chief will undergo interviews all day Monday, Nov. 18 and part of Tuesday, Nov. 19; A decision could be made as early as Tuesday afternoon.

There are three internal candidates: Deputy Chief William “Bill” Macki, Lt. Jeremy Moe and Lt. Derik Zimmel. The remaining two are Daniel “Danny” Weigel, a UND Police Department patrol commander; and Jason Freedman, a police captain and SWAT commander in Madison, Wisconsin.

A sixth finalist, Robert Jones, chief of police in Woodstock, Georgia, has withdrawn his application, according to Tangee Bouvette, the city’s human resources director.

Interviews will take place all day Monday and each candidate will introduce themselves at that evening’s city council meeting. There will be final presentations in the morning on Tuesday, scores will be recorded and the interview panel will make its recommendations to Mayor Brandon Bochenski, who will make the final hiring decision.

“It’s all based on their interview questions and whether they’re a good fit for the community,” said Bouvette, one of five interview panelists.

The other panelists are Todd Feland, city manager; Tony Hodny, president of the Grand Forks-East Grand Forks Chamber of Commerce; Todd Forkel, CEO of Altru Health System; and Grand Forks Fire Chief Gary Lorenz.

A standout candidate could be clear Tuesday afternoon, or it could be a closer decision, in which case the panel could present two or more top choices to the mayor.

“I’m not sure how it’s going to turn out,” Bouvette said. “But then we would have to decide at that moment: will the mayor sit down with (the top candidates) at another time? We’ll have to see.”

However, she hopes a clear decision will be made by the end of the day on Tuesday, she said.

The final offer will be subject to reference and background checks. Because the principal position is grade 26 on the city’s salary plan, the minimum salary will be approximately $140,000 and the maximum will be approximately $212,500.

As deputy chief, Macki oversees the GFPD administrative division, which includes the Education and Outreach Bureau, the Facilities and Equipment Bureau, and the Records Administration Bureau.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Macki has been with the agency for 30 years and served as deputy chief for about three years.

He earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and law enforcement from Metropolitan State University in 2012, and a Master of Public Administration from American Military University in 2017.

Moe earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and corrections from UND in 2004 and then began his law enforcement career with the GFPD in 2005. He served as a lieutenant for eight and a half years.

Moe oversees the Criminal Investigations Bureau, which investigates crimes to identify suspects and give prosecutors the information they need to pursue charges and convict offenders, according to the GFPD website.

Zimmel earned a bachelor’s degree in aviation studies from UND in 1992. From the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, he received a degree in forensic criminology in 2012 and a master’s degree in criminal justice in 2013.

Zimmel has worked at the GFPD since 1998. He oversees the Education and Outreach Bureau, which aims to foster partnerships between police officers and the residents of Grand Forks. Other objectives include increasing the professionalism of the agency, being active in the community and focusing on employee well-being and success.

Weigel earned an associate’s degree in criminal justice and law enforcement from Lake Region State College in 2014, a bachelor’s degree in communications from UND in 2018 and a master’s degree in executive leadership from Liberty University in 2020.

His law enforcement experience began in 2010 when he joined the Walsh County Sheriff’s Office as a sheriff’s deputy. Two years later, he was hired by the UNDPD, where he served in several positions, including public information officer and investigation commander.

Weigel has been patrol commander since February.

Weigel is also a current member of the Grand Forks City Council, a position he has held since 2016. If he is offered the chief position, he will have to resign from his council position to take up the job. If that happens, the city will have two options, according to City Clerk Sherie Lundmark. The council could call for a special election to fill the vacant position for the remainder of this term, or it could appoint someone from Weigel’s district until the next regular municipal election, which will take place in June 2026.

Freedman’s biography on the city of Madison website says he earned a bachelor’s degree in history, political science and international relations from UW Madison, and then a master’s degree in public administration from UW Oshkosh. He was hired by the Madison Police Department in 1997.

It covers the Midtown District, which spans the west side of Madison.