2 finalists in the running for San Luis police chief

SAN LUIS, Ariz. — Two law enforcement officers, one working in the Yuma area and the other from Phoenix, are finalists for the position of police chief here.

The San Luis City Council is scheduled to vote to appoint one of the two to the position at its meeting on Aug. 10, Mayor Juan Carlos Escamilla said.

City officials are not identifying either of the candidates, pending a decision by the council on whom to hire.

Both are well-qualified to take the reins of the police department, Escamilla said, and both are certified by the state as Arizona law enforcement officers.

Earlier this year, the council decided against renewing the contract of then-Police Chief Rick Flores, a one-time Texas sheriff who arrived in San Luis from Laredo, after he failed to earn certification from the Arizona Peace Officer Standards and Training Board as an officer. Flores's contract had stipulated that he become certified within a year of his joining the department in April 2010.

Flores had been hired a starting salary of $90,000, with benefits bringing the value of his compensation to nearly $100,000.

But Escamilla said that owing to tough economic times, the city can't afford to be as generous to the next chief.

“For my part, I am proposing a lower salary than what the former police chief had, one that is based on the financial situation at City Hall,” he said.

The two finalists, both of whom are currently employed by law enforcement agencies, were selected from among a field of eight applicants.