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The City of San Marcos announced five finalists for Chief of Police on Tuesday.
The city with assistance from Ralph Anderson & Associates chose current Interim Police Chief Bob Klett, Chief Robert Brown, Chief Adele Fresé, Deputy Chief Brad McKeone and Chief Stan Standridge from an applicant pool of 92 candidates from across the country. The finalist will participate in an interview process set to begin later this month.
Brown currently serves as the Chief of Police for the City of Duncanville. He was appointed as Duncanville’s police chief on Feb. 5, 2007. He began his law enforcement career in Waco as a police cadet in June 1982. He worked as a field training officer in Waco and joined the University Park Police Department in 1994. During his tenure with the University Park PD, he became the department’s first African American sergeant, lieutenant and captain. He’s received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Northwood University and earned a Master of Business Administration Degree in Management from Amberton University. He holds a Master Peace Officer certification from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement.
Fresé currently serves as the Chief of Police in Salinas, Calif. The City of San Marcos said she leads a department of over 230 law enforcement and support personnel with a budget of $52 million a year. Fresé served in the United States Marine Corps. She became a patrol officer from the Corpus Christi Police Department in 1994. Fresé rose through the ranks as a field training officer, sergeant and lieutenant. She’s worked a variety of assignments in patrol, crime prevention, special operations, narcotic investigations and support services. Fresé holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice Administration from California State University at Hayward, and she earned a Master of Science in Public Safety. Fresé is a Texas Certified Public Manager.
Klett is currently SMPD’s Interim Chief of Police. He’s worked in the department for 31 years. He began his public service career in 1986 as a volunteer for Gillespie County EMS and the South Hays County Volunteer Fire Department. He also worked as a police officer in the then-Southwest Texas State University Police Department as he continued to volunteer. Klett became a police officer with the San Marcos Police Department in 1989, and simultaneously served as a volunteer firefighter with the San Marcos Fire Department. He was promoted to police corporal in 1995, police sergeant in 1999, police commander in 2010 and assistant police chief in 2014. Klett graduated from the International Association of Police Chief’s Leadership in Police Organizations program. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Applied Arts from Texas State University. Klett holds a Master Peace Officer certification from the TCOLE.
McKeone has served in law enforcement for over 20 years with the Coral Springs Police Department in Coral Springs, Fla., where he currently works as the Deputy Chief of Operations. McKeone also served as a field training officer, a detective in the Vice, Intelligence and Narcotics Unit and task force officer with the Drug Enforcement Agency, Fort Lauderdale District Office. McKeone was promoted to sergeant in 2009, supervising areas within the Patrol Division and Traffic Unit. He was promoted to lieutenant in 2014 and deputy chief of police in March 2018. He’s received multiple awards for exceptional police initiative, team citations and was Officer of the Year in 2008. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice degree from Florida Atlantic University and earned his Master’s in Criminal Justice Administration from Columbia Southern University.
Standridge has worked as the Abilene Police Department’s Chief of Police for the last 11 years. He’s worked for APD for over 25 years. He is currently the President of the Texas Police Chiefs Association. Standridge holds a Master Public Administration degree from Sam Houston State University. He is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. Standridge has earned multiple awards: 20 Under 40 Business Leader, Executive Leadership Award, I-CAN Hero, and the TPCA’s Innovation Award. Standridge chaired Texas’s Officer Safety Committee and helped create VINCIBLE — a state program that aims to reduce police officer line of duty deaths and injuries — which is used by over 1,500 police agencies, including SMPD.
The interview process is set to start in mid to late-September. The candidates will be interviewed by five interview panels, which includes community stakeholders, community criminal justice partners, SMPD employees, city executive team members and the San Marcos City Council. Following the interview process, the candidate pool will be decreased to two to three candidates. Interviews will continue and a community meet and greet will take place prior to a final candidate being chosen.
The public’s perspective was included in the selection process through an online survey conducted during July and the first week in August. A total of 1,089 responses were collected and analyzed.
