Greeley City Manager Raymond Lee invites the community to meet the four semifinalists under consideration to become Greeley’s next chief of police.
Officials selected four candidates to advance in the hiring process. The next steps will include an open forum for the community to meet the semifinalists and offer feedback.
The forum will take place from 6-7:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 18, in the Council Chambers of City Center South, 1001 11th Ave.
Semifinalists
The four semifinalists (alphabetical by last name):
Bryce Johnson
The law enforcement career of the Idaho Falls, Idaho, police chief spans 29 years. Before becoming police chief of Idaho Falls in August 2017, he served four years as the police chief for the Juneau Police Department in Alaska.
The Salt Lake City native previously spent 21 years rising through the ranks with his hometown department. His assignments there included watch commander, tactical commander, and assistant bureau commander.
Johnson served seven years as an intelligence analyst with the U.S. Naval Reserve. He earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah, a Master’s of Public Administration from Brigham Young University, and graduated from the FBI National Executive Institute.
Ernest Morales III
The recently retired Mount Vernon Police Department First Deputy Commissioner, Morales has 31 years of patrol, investigative and administrative experience. He was previously the executive officer responsible for safety and security of 51 New York City Housing Authority Developments in the Bronx and Queens, and the deputy inspector and commanding officer of the city’s 042 precinct.
Prior, he led the Transit Bureau District 12, responsible for the safe transportation of 500,000 commuters daily in the Bronx. He’s been a lieutenant in narcotics enforcement, patrol services, and a sergeant in Internal Affairs.
The active U.S. Naval Reserve officer earned a master’s degree from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, a bachelor’s degree in Police Administration from the State University of New York-Saratoga Springs, and graduated from the FBI’s National Academy.
Adam Turk
With over 22 years of law enforcement experience, Turk currently serves as the city’s interim police chief. He started his managerial career with the city in 2007 as a sergeant supervising detective staff. He was promoted to lieutenant in 2013, overseeing all law enforcement patrol operations. In 2018, he became deputy chief.
Among his leadership duties, he assists in planning and developing organizational policies and procedures. Turk started with Greeley as a police officer in 1999. In his time with the department, he also worked as a detective and patrol officer.
Turk graduated from the FBI National Academy and earned a master’s degree in Criminal Justice and a bachelor’s degree in Sociology from the University of Northern Colorado.
Richard Worley
The Baltimore Police colonel has served over 23 years with the department. In his position as Chief of Criminal Investigations, his duties include overseeing the homicide unit, the citywide robbery unit, the special investigations section and the warrant apprehension task force.
In previous positions—which include Chief of Patrol—he commanded a division with over 1,500 personnel and served as the incident commander for most major incidents in the city. He started with the department in 1998 and rose through the ranks as a patrol officer, sergeant, lieutenant, captain, major, lieutenant colonel and colonel.
Worley earned a bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Oklahoma City University and has completed numerous law enforcement trainings.
About the Process
Planning to select the city’s police chief started in January following the retirement of Mark Jones in September. Recruiting began in February and the search drew 23 applicants from across 12 states by the application deadline of March 20. The four candidates above were selected for on-site interviews as part of the hiring process. The three-day on-site schedule will include tours of the city, meetings with city personnel and other opportunities for the candidates to familiarize themselves with the city and department.
About the Police Department
Founded in 1871, the Greeley Police Department is one of the 10 largest police departments in Colorado, comprising over 158 sworn and 63 civilian personnel and operating with an annual budget of $34.5 million. The department consists of two divisions: operations and support services. Operations includes most of the crime prevention, traffic enforcement and control, and general law enforcement services. Support services includes administrative functions, case investigation, and police training development.
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