Hutchinson city manager says firing police chief was not a ‘snap decision’

HUTCHINSON, Kan. (KSNW) — The Hutchinson Police Department is looking for a new chief after City leaders fired Jeff Hooper Tuesday morning.

City Manager, Kendal Francis, said this was not a snap decision. As for what happened, he and the vice mayor say they cannot comment on personnel matters.

“It is the best decision both for the organization and for the community moving forward,” Francis said.

He said this decision took a lot of thought.

“Over the course of the time that I’ve been here, I’ve had to really take time to really weigh facts and look at the situation as a whole,” Francis said. “I just want people to know I took this very seriously. This wasn’t a snap decision or an easy decision.”

Whether this situation will prompt any internal changes for the department, Francis says they will take Interim Chief Alan Stoecklein’s suggestions into consideration as well as the new police chief.

“If there are some efficiencies that we can explore or tweaks to the structure, to the process, we’ll absolutely look at those options,” Francis said.

When it comes to finding a new chief, Francis is looking to survey the community and the officers to find out what characteristics are expected for that position.

“The city manager will map out a plan,” Hutchinson Vice Mayor Greg Fast said. “We as a council will implement that. We’ll have lots of community engagement to pick the next chief of police for our citizens here in Hutch.”

In the meantime, retired Kansas Highway Patrol Lieutenant Colonel Alan Stoecklein is serving as the interim chief.

KSN reached out to Hooper but said he did not want to comment.