Fair Grove selects new police chief to build up new force following resignations

The future of the Fair Grove Police Department began taking shape Thursday evening as the city's Board of Aldermen selected a new police chief. After over two hours of interviews and deliberations, the board named Roy Howell as the next chief.

The position had been vacant since mid-December, when Greene County Sheriff Jim Arnott took over the post as acting chief and set out to find candidates for the job after the chief and several officers resigned, leaving only one fully-trained officer at the department. This was the second time Arnott had taken over the department, following similar turnover at the department in 2020.

Who is Roy Howell?

Howell, originally from Omaha, Nebraska, has more than thirty years of experience in law enforcement. Currently working as a park ranger in Springfield, he spent almost 20 years at the Bellevue Police Department in Nebraska, where he assembled a cyber forensic lab from the ground up and worked with a K9 who was the first in the Midwest trained to sniff out electronics.

Following interview questions from the board in closed session, community members had the opportunity to ask their own questions of the two candidates. During the forum, Howell emphasized the importance of community relations and interactions.

"Integrity, ethics and honesty is a big thing and you want those to be in your people," he said. "That way you can trust them to go out and do the things that you're doing, you want them to reflect you and if they don't, then you're not going to have a good department."

Some citizens explicitly asked about Howell's ability to lead a department amid tensions with the board, as they have observed with previous police staff. Howell said he understand small towns and finds transparency to be paramount in making things work.

"I'm a fixer... I try and fix things," he said. "I think I can come in here into the community and fix the problems or build a relationship between the board and the citizens, that would be my goal ... I think I could be that person in between that makes everything jam, I truly do."

Howell said he had previously applied for the chief of police job in Buffalo, Missouri but was not selected.

Coming into an empty department, Howell noted that regaining fully-staffed status will not be an easy feat as the candidate pool for police officers is "slim pickings" as departments around the country face shortages.

While visiting with those attending the forum on Thursday, Howell noted that taking the job would mean a pay cut from his current position. According to online postings, a Springfield park ranger salary falls between $41,849.60 and $65,145.60, while the range for the Fair Grove police chief is listed at $55,000-58,000.

More: Fair Grove left without police force, chief once again following resignations

Who was Howell up against?

Thursday's interview process only included one other candidate, Chris Horn of Fulton. He attended the meeting virtually as his fiancée had given birth to their daughter that morning.

Horn has eight years of experience as a police officer with additional experience in corrections and Missouri Army National Guard. He also holds a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Lincoln University, a master's degree in homeland security and a graduate certificate in criminology from Missouri State University.

In answering the community's questions, Horn also emphasized the importance of being visible in the community and building relationships with those the department serves.

Marta Mieze covers local government at the News-Leader. Contact her with tips at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Springfield News-Leader: Fair Grove hires new police chief to rebuild staff after resignations