Despite mounting criticism and public pressure, Akron Mayor Shammas Malik remains steadfast in his assertion that the next police chief must come from within the Akron Police Department and that it’s not worth waiting to change the rule he says prevents him from hiring externally.
Malik is following a state law that his law department says requires police positions above entry level to be filled by internal promotion from the rank below. He’s also unwilling to wait for a potential November ballot measure that would create language in the city charter to allow him to hire externally.
The mayor’s current stance appears to guarantee that Akron’s next police chief will be a white man hired from the APD ranks, even if there were other qualified — and diverse — candidates identified before Malik shut down his nationwide search last month.
Because Deputy Chief Brian Harding and Deputy Chief Jesse Leeser both applied, they are the only two candidates Malik believes he can consider. Harding is currently the acting chief, a title he’ll hold until the new chief is named.
Black elected officials disappointed with internal search
The Black Elected Officials of Summit County released a letter written by Akron City Council Member Linda Omobien on March 27 expressing the group’s disappointment with the internal-only search. Because there are so few people of color in leadership positions within the APD, Malik’s assertion that he can only hire from within means “it would take 20-30 years for the department’s top leadership to become truly diverse,” the letter stated.
The group called on the mayor to do three things: Pause the police chief search, seek advice from the Ohio Attorney General’s Office before proceeding, and, if the legal advice stands as is, to seek a charter amendment before resuming the search in order to have the most diverse pool possible.
Malik responded to the BEOSC on April 3 and rejected its requests. To wait until after a ballot measure in November to appoint the next chief isn’t in the city’s best interests, he said.
“I believe the work ahead – of reviewing and changing policies and training, of rolling out new initiatives that implement community policing, violence intervention, and more – will be best accomplished with a leader within APD who is able to fully lead the organization,” the mayor wrote. “This is something I gave considerable thought to when we found out the limitations we were being faced with. Therefore, I do not plan to pause the search for our next police chief.”
City did not seek Ohio Attorney General’s opinion
Malik said the city can’t seek the Ohio Attorney General’s legal opinion on the matter because the office “has very specific limitations regarding the types of entities they can provide advice to, and the office is not able to provide the city with legal advice that we can rely upon regarding our city charter.”
Malik previously only talked about the city law department’s interpretation of the rule. In his April 3 letter, he states, “We did seek outside legal counsel to verify the research and findings of our law department and that advice was consistent with the conclusion our team reached. I am confident in their conclusions, and I don’t believe we need to seek additional feedback at this time.”
In a letter that same day, BEOSC Vice President Tavia Galonski, the Summit County Clerk of Courts, said Malik “has completely ignored all of our concerns; our questions remain and are growing.”
Galonski argued the mayor “has full authority to hire/appoint” the police chief because it is not a promotion.
The BEOSC, NAACP, and Freedom BLOC invited Malik to a community forum they are hosting on Tuesday at 6 p.m. at Buchtel Community Learning Center.
On April 4, Council Member Eric Garrett wrote a letter to Malik to “express deep concerns” about his handling of the police chief search and called on the mayor to share the legal analysis he’s relying on from the law department and the outside lawyers. The law department rejected a records request from the Beacon Journal seeking the analysis, citing attorney-client privilege.
“If you choose to withhold the legal opinion, it will undermine the principles of transparency that you championed during your campaign; moreover, it would further erode the trust of the community,” he wrote. “Transparency is not just a campaign promise; it is a fundamental aspect of good governance in every decision you make. Transparency requires openness and accountability to build trust and foster a stronger relationship between the city and the community.”
Malik will hold two town halls with the two internal finalists at Buchtel Community Learning Center at 1040 Copley Rd. The first will be Saturday, April 20 from 10 to 11:30 a.m.; the second will be Tuesday, April 23 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.
