Finalists named in search for new Blaine police chief

The search for a new police chief has been narrowed down to three finalists, who will be interviewed by committee of city staff, officials and others on May 9.

Timothy Doney, James Miyashiro and Donnell Tanksley have been selected from the pool of 14 candidates who applied for the position.

The hiring process is at the discretion of city manager Michael Jones, who has arranged a day of interviews on May 9 from 8:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Four city councilmembers will be participating, as well as the recruitment firm that is overseeing the search, the Prothman Company. The Prothman Company is based in Issaquah and specializes in providing national and regional executive recruitment services to large and small cities, counties, special districts, nonprofits and other governmental agencies throughout the U.S.

Community organizations and law enforcement agencies will also be participating in the interviews. Two interview panels have been assembled with about 14 people representing different perspectives.

“The city manager has hiring authority over department heads,” said Jones in an April 25 email. “I’ll make the decision after consulting with the recruitment firm, the 14 or so people who sit on interview panels, city council and the officers who have met with the candidates. Basically, I’ll take into account all the information I have, check references further and make a preliminary offer if I’m satisfied.”

The city manager opted not to hold a public forum. “I decided not to include a public forum this time because I felt that with resumes and supplemental responses, two preliminary interviews, two panel interviews, a final interview with the city manager, input from the police department and reference checks, I’m already provided with a tremendous amount of information to consider,” said Jones, who noted that in the past couple of decades, the city has only twice done a public forum for hiring.

After the May 9 interviews, the vetting process is expected to take some time. If a preliminary offer is extended to one of the finalists, a background investigation will then occur. If the investigation presents no significant concerns, the city will proceed with polygraph and psychological evaluations. “When it’s all done, assuming a candidate gets through all those steps, I’ll present a contract to city council for consideration,” said Jones.

All three finalists are from out of state, which is not uncommon for a search of this type, said Jones. One of the first-round applicants was a city employee, but Jones declined to name them.

According to candidate bios provided by the city, Timothy Doney is currently the police chief for the city of Talent, Oregon. He was also police chief for the city of Springfield, Oregon, for over three years, retiring in 2016. Doney was with the Medford police department in Oregon from 1988 to 2013, starting as a patrol officer and serving in positions including detective, sergeant, lieutenant and deputy police chief. He has a bachelor of science degree in business management and communications from Corban College, Salem, Oregon, and he is a graduate of the FBI National Academy.

James Miyashiro has 34 years’ of experience in law enforcement in California. He is currently assistant vice president of the department of campus safety at the University of San Diego. Prior to that, he was senior director of safety operations for the University of La Verne. His chief of police experience includes Riverside Community College for eight years and the Santa Ana Unified School District for 11 years. He has also served the cities of Desert Hot Springs, San Jacinto and La Palma police departments. Miyashiro has a bachelor’s degree in management from the University of Phoenix and an associate degree in criminal justice from Golden West College.

Donnell Tanksley has been chief of police for Portland State University in Oregon since 2017. Prior to that, he was the assistant chief of police for Western Washington University in Bellingham for over three years. Tanksley was with the St. Louis Metropolitan police department in Missouri from 1993 to 2014, and held the position of commander from 2007 to 2014.

Tanksley has associate degrees in human resource management, education and training management, and criminal justice, a bachelor’s degree in management from National-Louis University, and a master’s degree in management from Fontbonne University.