San Marcos Announces Five Finalists For Chief Of Police

The City of San Marcos has selected five candidates to interview in its Chief of Police recruitment process.

Ralph Andersen & Associates is assisting the City with the search which resulted in an applicant pool of 92 candidates from across the United States.

The following finalists were chosen to participate in the interview process scheduled in September:

Chief Robert Brown

Brown was appointed Chief of Police for the City of Duncanville, Texas on February 5th, 2007. Chief Brown began his law enforcement career in Waco, Texas as a police cadet in June of 1982.

Brown served as a Field Training Officer in Waco and joined the University Park Police Department in 1994.

He worked in many capacities and advanced through the ranks very quickly; becoming the first African American sergeant, lieutenant, and captain in the history of the University Park Police Department.

Brown earned a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree from Northwood University and holds a Master of Business Administration Degree in Management from Amberton University.

Brown is a graduate of the 38th Management College from the Institute for Law Enforcement Administration (ILEA) in Plano, Texas.

He is also a graduate of the prestigious FBI National Academy, Session #216, in Quantico, Virginia. He holds a Master Peace Officer certification from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE).

Chief Adele Fresé

Fresé is currently the Chief of Police in Salinas, California. Chief Fresé leads a department of over 230 law enforcement and support personnel, with an annual budget of $52 million.

Fresé began her public service career in 1985 by serving in the United States Marine Corps. In 1994, she joined the Corpus Christi Police Department as a patrol officer and rose through the ranks to field training officer, sergeant, and lieutenant.

She worked and provided positive leadership to police personnel in a wide variety of assignments in Patrol, Crime Prevention, Special Operations, Narcotic Investigations, and Support Services.

Fresé earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Criminal Justice Administration from California State University at Hayward, and a minor degree in Sociology in 1992.

She earned a Master of Science in Public Safety, completed the Senior Executives in State and Local Government at the Harvard Kennedy School, and PERF’s Senior Management Institute for Police. Fresé is a Texas Certified Public Manager.

Chief Bob Klett

Klett has spent 31 years serving the citizens of San Marcos, Texas at the San Marcos Police Department where he currently holds the title of Interim Police Chief.

Chief Klett began his public service career in 1986 in a volunteer capacity for Gillespie County EMS and South Hays County Volunteer Fire Department.

During his tenure at these agencies, he worked in various positions including Police Officer in the Southwest Texas State University Police Department.

In 1989, he began his career at the San Marcos Police Department as a Police Officer, while simultaneously serving as reserve firefighter to the San Marcos Fire Department.

He was promoted to Police Corporal in 1995, Police Sergeant in 1999, Police Commander in 2010, and Assistant Police Chief in 2014. He has held lifesaving roles in the San Marcos Aquatic Recovery Team, the Civil Air Patrol, and has worked as an educator for local public safety academies.

In his role as Interim Chief, he has led SMPD in police reform and partnered with the San Marcos Criminal Justice Committee.

Klett is a graduate of the International Association of Police Chief’s Leadership in Police Organizations program and holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Applied Arts from Texas State University.

He is a member of the Texas Police Chiefs Association, the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Hays County Criminal Justice Association, the Hays County Criminal Justice Coordinating Commission, the CAPCOG Criminal Justice Advisory Committee, and holds a Master Peace Officer certification from the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE).

Deputy Chief Brad McKeone

McKeone has over 20 years of law enforcement experience with the Coral Springs Police Department in Coral Springs, Florida, and is currently the Deputy Chief of Operations.

Early in his career, Deputy Chief McKeone served as a Field Training Officer, a Detective in the Vice, Intelligence and Narcotics Unit and task force officer with the Drug Enforcement Administration, Fort Lauderdale District Office.

After his promotion to Sergeant in 2009, McKeone supervised areas within the Patrol Division and Traffic Unit. In 2014, he was promoted to Lieutenant and served as a platoon commander on patrol.

Following his promotion to Captain, McKeone supervised the Community Services and Operational Support components.

He was promoted to Deputy Chief of Police in March of 2018; overseeing the Operations Division which consists of Operational Support (Patrol and Traffic units), Criminal Investigations, and the Special Operations divisions.

He has received multiple awards for Exceptional Police Initiative, Team Citations and was Officer of the Year in 2008. McKeone graduated from Florida Atlantic University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Criminal Justice and Columbia Southern University with a Master’s in Criminal Justice Administration.

Deputy Chief McKeone is a graduate of the Southern Police Institute (SPI) Command Officers Development Course, session #75, and the FBI National Academy (FBINA) Program held in Quantico, Virginia, session #276.

Chief Stan Standridge

Standridge has served more than 25 years with the Abilene Police Department, the last eleven of which as the Chief of Police.

Chief Standridge currently serves as the President of the Texas Police Chiefs Association (TPCA), an organization that seeks to promote the professional practice of law enforcement and advocates for the highest standards of ethical conduct among today’s peace officers.

Standridge has a Master of Public Administration degree from Sam Houston State University and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy.

He graduated from LEMIT’s Leadership Command College in 2009 and the FBI’s Law Enforcement Executive Development (LEADS) program in 2018.

Standridge is the recipient of numerous awards, including 20 Under 40 Business Leader, Executive Leadership Award, I-CAN Hero, and the TPCA’s Innovation Award.

He has chaired the State’s Officer Safety Committee and worked with his team to create VINCIBLE–a statewide program that works to reduce police officer line of duty deaths and injuries in Texas–which is used by more than 1,500 police agencies, including the San Marcos Police Department.

Community Survey

To include the public’s perspective in the selection process, an online community survey was available during July and the first week of August in both English and Spanish.

The survey contained a variety of questions about department priorities, community engagement, safety and desired qualities of the next Chief of Police.

A total of 1,089 responses were collected and analyzed. A survey summary report is available in English and Spanish.

Interview Process

Starting in mid to late-September, candidates will be interviewed by five interview panels consisting of groups of community stakeholders, community criminal justice partners, Police Department employees, City Executive Team members, and the City Council.

Based on the results of these interviews, the candidate pool will be narrowed to two to three candidates.

Additional in-person interviews will be conducted with the narrowed candidate pool and a community meet and greet will take place, after which a final candidate will be chosen.