Topeka leaders still deciding on next TPD Chief

TOPEKA ( KSNT ) – Topeka leaders are still deliberating on the next Topeka Police Chief.

Working for you, 27 News asked Topeka City Manager Robert Perez where he stands with the decision on the next Chief for the Topeka Police Department (TPD) at Tuesday's City Council meeting. Perez said discussions about the next chief will be had during executive session after the council meeting.

No action was taken after executive session. Two weeks ago, Perez told 27 News a Police Chief would have been chosen last week. Russell Klumpp and Chris Vallejo are the candidates up for consideration for the next TPD Police Chief.

Woman sentenced to 14 days in jail in massive Topeka animal abuse case

Major Klumpp is a lifelong Topekan and has been with the Topeka Police Department (TPD) for nearly 30 years. Sixteen of those years have come at the command level. Klumpp told 27 News that with an understanding of the Topeka community, community relations is always the top priority.

"Community relations is always the top priority," Klumpp said. "We do that through community policing philosophy, having those positive contacts in the community, being engaged with the community, having more transparency with the community and having opportunities with that open dialog."

Vallejo is not from Topeka, or the Sunflower State for that matter, but he has three decades of law enforcement experience under his belt. From training, to investigation, to patrol in Austin, Texas with a metropolitan area of more than a million people and two million metro.

Flight academy settles at Philip Billard Airport

While both capital cities aren't comparable when it comes to size, Vallejo told 27 News he believes his experiences translate directly.

"Policing is largely a social service, so there's no shortage of folks here that we serve and protect and we provide services to them," Vallejo said. "So, it's pretty much scalable up or down I believe."

For more local news,. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts . .