"reader"'s comment would be appropriate in a "normally run" city, however, in the City of Milton, the council is responsible for letting the Administrator run amock. The Administrator chose and directed the Roberts to get him someone he wanted and therefore, Roberts directed the Police Commission to do what he wanted and put their rubber stamp on it. Beachsexton is right on the money. The process that is used around here is unethical, ILLEGAL (if the Attorney General's office would just dig a little into evidence), and immoral. Until the City Council wakes up and deals with the Administrator's immoral, unethical (and sometimes illegal) ways of doing business, things will NEVER get better around here.

People can call the Police Commission, but the REAL change and remedy MUST COME FROM THE CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS (also people that this administrator has manipulated quite well).

Way to go Beachsexton!!!

If people have complaints, they need to speak with the Police Commission, not city council. The city council only has authority to approve the negotiated contract. The final and only authority on appointment of a police chief rests with the Police Commission.

Good observations, skipper. Is it that out of 31 candidates 5 of the candidates could be considered easily overlooked on the way to Schuetz? Or can the case be made that assuming the other 25 candidates were moderately acceptable, and that the Commission was again going to allow an exception to the requirements they set forth, then allowing Gross and Conger in the top 6 makes Schuetz standout. The problem is having Gross and Conger in the final 6 means the others were silly to apply, or really looked bad on paper. I think it is great the Commission is flexible. I laid out why I think Conger would be a good deal for the City in my previous post. I do not know Gross, and can say nothing about him. Steeber on the other hand is very well qualified. He is local, well known, and respected. While no person is perfect or loved by all, Steeber is good at what he does. For all I know Schuetz ad the others are excellent choices as well, but for one person to narrow the pack, do the background, and present as the lead candidate is the reason police commissions were enacted. The Police Commission needs to do the job they were told to do without interference. Roberts is, at best, a helping hand with an opinion if it is allowed. Schmidt reviews and presents the choice(s) to Council for review and consideration before voting to send back to the Commission or instruct Todd to enter into contract talks. Wait, did I mention a routine psychological exam to see if this candidate is not only fit for the job, but also to see if he/she has the characteristics of the type of leader the City of Milton desires? My gripe is about the process, not the candidates. The process needs to have been more open. People should be skeptical if not outraged. Questioning the oddities in the process is necessary. There is something you can do! It is not too late! Go to http://www.ci.milton.wi.us/page.aspx?pag... and call the reps you see listed. They work for you. They represent you. Again, Schuetz may be a great candidate. The question is if out of 31, he is the truly the best for Milton. He may be. Demand a process that allows all of us to be nearly 100% certain, and confident without a doubt that our process has led us to the best candidate for Milton's future.

Two of the many requirements for the job were; 1. 3-5 years of Command Experience. 2. A Bachelors Degree. So where did Gross get his 3-5 years of Command Experience and where did Conger go to college??????
Also, yesterday they said Jerry was the only “finalist” now they did have five…. They did half of the right thing. Now release their résumés.

No background search on this guy either? Or did the Administrator do this one himself again? Not since the days of nepotism at GM, have I ever seen a hiring process so guided and appear to be on a fast-track like this. If only it were this easy of a process to be hired into any other job. Maybe if they get the contract signed, Todd and Robers can go help Janesville hire a Manager. They could maybe have the Janesville Manager and Milton position filled by the end of this week yet.

Insidetrack, you have a great point. I think they should consider some of the other candidates also. In fact, it would even be beneficial to consider the application of the applicant that applied from within. They may not have the command experience that the Commission is looking for, but it may be a way to:
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-have the least disruption & smoothest transition
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-shorter learning curve as ice already broken
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-keep officer that has been committed to this dept. in our city
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-offer a trade-off of saving taxpayers money with a lower salary to start with. Officer receives promotion of a lifetime, and increase as incentives.
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-quick implementation of improvements and changes because they know what is most needed.
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No one is perfect, but given the chance to prove oneself may be just what this person needs. They already have the respect of the other officers, and have assisted in running the department for the past 8 months. This is an option that should be considered. Let the Commission and Council review more than just one person. This process has been too fast, too close, and too guided. The Council members need to stand up and speak for the citizens that elected them!
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Insidetracks comment:
As one of the 31 who applied for this position I find it suspicious that the only one selected was Roberts' friend from UW-Platteville. Roberts took Milton for a ride and did not even stick to his protocol. Only phone interviews were conducted with Roberts, another chief and the chief of Appleton (a town next to the new chief's town). The new chief was fron a town of 1300 people and the other applicants, some of which were more qualified, were not even interviewed by the council.......was the impropper influence? Did the new chief have access to the initial questions that were the only basis for selection? The council should look at the resumes of the others who were al least interviewed, if not all who applied to ensure that the best qualified canidate was selected. Call your council member and let them know..... Good luck Milton with the selection, you paid dearly for it!