This story was updated with additional information.
Cincinnati Assistant Police Chief Adam Hennie has been named interim chief of the department, pending the outcome of an investigation into Police Chief Teresa Theetge.
City Manager Sheryl Long placed Theetge on paid administrative leave Oct. 20 while the city looks into “the effectiveness of her leadership” over the police department, according to a statement.
Last week, news broke that the city and police chief were negotiating for the chief to resign. Theetge’s leadership has come under scrutiny following a series of high-profile crimes that have drawn national attention.
If history is any indication, four people, including Hennie, will have a head start at taking over the top spot.
Both Chief Teresa Theetge and her predecessor Eliot Isaac were assistant chiefs before they stepped up to lead the Cincinnati Police Department. All of the city’s four assistant chiefs have all been promoted to the rank this year.
Who is Interim Chief Adam Hennie?
Adam Hennie is currently one of four assistant chiefs at the Cincinnati Police Department. He was promoted to that role less than two weeks ago on Oct. 10.
Hennie is a graduate of Mentor High School in Mentor, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland, according to Enquirer media partner Fox 19. He earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from the University of Louisville and master’s degree in the same from the University of Cincinnati. He also spent four years with the U.S. Navy.
Hennie has decades of experience at the department, having joined the force in 1999, according to city data. He was promoted to sergeant in 2005, lieutenant in 2008, captain in 2021 and lieutenant colonel in October.
Before stepping up to assistant chief, Hennie was the captain of the Central Business Section, which includes Downtown and Mount Adams. He also used to be one of the deputy commander’s of the department’s civil disturbance response team, initially formed to manage protests.
Earlier in his career, he was in charge of the department’s Youth Service Section and its school resource officers.
Hennie resides in Colerain Township with his wife Kathy, according to Fox 19. He has three children: Matthew, Patrick, and Megan.
Who are the other assistant chiefs?
Lt. Col. Bridget Bardua and Lt. Col. Matthew Hammer were promoted in January. Hammer was previously the leader of District 1, while Bardua had headed the Special Investigations Section.
Lt. Col. Mark Burns was also promoted this month. Burns previously ran the internal investigations, a department Theetge also headed before her promotion.
4 assistant chiefs have over a century of experience in Cincinnati Police Department
Between the four of them, the four assistant chiefs have over a century of experience in the department. Burns, Hammer and Hennie all joined the force in 1999, according to city data, and Bardua joined in 1996.
Theetge joined the Cincinnati Police Department in 1990.
The current assistant chiefs make between $169,000 and $172,000 a year, according to a city database. Theetge is paid $203,047.
What happened during city’s last search for new Cincinnati police chief?
Before Theetge was promoted to chief in early 2023 she was named the interim chief. The city launched a national search and eventually narrowed down the field to two internal candidates – Theetge and Capt. Lisa Davis – and two external candidates – Todd Chamberlain and Larry Boone.
Davis is now the police chief in Austin, Texas. Another former assistant chief, Paul Neudigate, is the police chief in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
During the last chief search, city consultant Iris Roley set up a series of community conversations with the four finalists. They took questions from the community and spoke about their philosophy of law enforcement.
Historically, the rank and file of the police department has preferred that the chief come from within the department. During the last search, Cincinnati’s police union strongly urged the city to select an internal candidate.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Who is Adam Hennie, Cincinnati’s interim police chief? What we know
Reporting by Cameron Knight, Scott Wartman and David Ferrara, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
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