DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF)- The Dallas Police Department could lose one of its high ranking officers to become the Frisco Police Chief.
Out of three finalists, two of them are long time DPD officers, the other Deputy Chief with the Frisco Police Department.
“I think its another reminder to the citizens of Dallas of the high quality of command staff that we have had here,” said Dallas Police Association President Mike Mata. Mata said as one city gains a good leader, Dallas could be losing one. “We always hope for all of our officers in the Dallas Police Department to better themselves and further their career and this is what these officers are doing in an attempt to be a Police Chief in another city,” he said.
In recent years, Dallas police has had trouble recruiting and keeping officers.
Mata said the city’s new budget includes a pay raise for DPD officers to remain competitive with other departments in DFW. “There’s also a component within this new pay plan that will allow us to maintain that competitiveness through future years,” he said. Mata said the recent pay raise has boosted recruitment efforts.
The Frisco Police Department is hosting a meet and greet for the community to meet the finalists on Monday, October 14th.
Following Monday’s public reception, the police chief finalists will have formal interviews on Tuesday. Consultant LeaderSelect, LLC is assisting the City of Frisco with the hiring process. The City of Frisco expects to name a new police chief by the end of October.
The three finalists are Stephen Max Geron, Major and Acting Deputy Chief with the Dallas Police Department; David Pughes, Executive Assistant Police Chief with the Dallas Police Department; and David Shilson, Deputy Chief with the Frisco Police Department. The police chief finalists were chosen from an original pool of 71 candidates.
Stephen Max Geron: Geron has worked for the Dallas Police Department for 27 years. He’s a Major and currently serves as Acting Deputy Chief, overseeing the Criminal Investigations Bureau. Geron holds a master’s degree from the Naval Postgraduate School and a bachelor’s degree from Midwestern State University. He’s a graduate of the FBI National Academy and the Caruth Police Institute’s Executive Leadership Series.
David Pughes: Pughes has worked for the Dallas Police Department since 1990, when he graduated first in his class and was elected class president. As the Executive Assistant Chief, Pughes is the acting chief in the absence of the Dallas Police Chief. Prior to working at Dallas PD, Pughes was a deputy sheriff in Jefferson County, Colorado. Pughes holds a master’s degree in human relations and business from Amberton University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and criminal psychology from Metropolitan State University of Denver.
David Shilson: Shilson has worked for the Frisco Police Department since 2002. He currently serves as Deputy Chief. Prior to coming to Frisco, Shilson was a police officer for the College Station Police Department. He holds a Master of Public Administration degree from the University of Texas-Arlington and a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Texas A&M. Shilson is a graduate of the FBI National Academy, Law Enforcement Management of Texas and Senior Management Institute for Police.
Interim Police Chief Greg Ward has been serving since June following the retirement of Chief John Bruce, who served the city for 23 years. Chief Ward will return to his previous role as Assistant Chief once a permanent police chief is hired.
