The Mancos town administrator announced Wednesday that three candidates for the marshal post will move forward.
The three candidates face a psychological evaluation, drug test, background investigation, skills test, integrity test and a polygraph examination.
They will also be interviewed by a board of law enforcement agencies and a panel of town representatives that will likely include trustees Will Stone, Lorraine Becker, Town Administrator Andrea Phillips, a representative from Mancos Schools and a representative from the Mancos Fire Protection District, the town board decided Wednesday.
The panels will ask each candidate the same questions and score their responses on a rubric, Phillips said.
All the applicants will also attend a community meet-and-greet, and the public will be welcome to submit their comments about each person to the town.
The town ramped up its hiring process after former marshal John Cox resigned amid misdemeanor and DUI charges.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation found Cox conducted a personal investigation of a romantic rival, fabricated a speeding ticket in August and September. In November he was arrested in La Plata County and being charged with a DUI.
Before he was hired by the town, Cox had been convicted of a DUI in 2009 in Indiana.
His cases are still pending in the 22nd Judicial District and La Plata County Court.
In searching for his replacement, the town considered 15 candidates and interviewed eight, before narrowing the pool to three.
The town is considering Joseph Roberts, the current police chief in Simla, Colorado, who has 32 years of experience in law enforcement, according to a news release. He is working on a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice.
He is competing with acting town marshal Jason Spruell, who has worked for the Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office for 17 years.
Spruell is a Montezuma County native and studied criminology at Colorado Mountain College.
Another local officer, Ken Underwood, a sergeant for the sheriff’s office, is also being considered.
He also has experience working for the Routt County Sheriff’s Office in Colorado, the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office in New Mexico, and the Chandler (Arizona) Police Department. He has an associate’s degree in criminology.
The town hopes to hire a marshal by mid-April. The new marshal’s salary will likely be between $58,000 and $64,000.
The board questioned how much was being spent on the hiring process, which including a background check, which will likely cost $1,500 to $2,000, per applicant. The total budgeted for the hiring process was not mentioned at the meeting.
“This is a very important position for the town of Mancos. We want to do our due diligence. ... We did think it was important to spend some money on that process up front,” Phillips told the board.
The community meet-and-greet for the candidates will be held from 6 to 7:30 p.m. March 10 at the Mancos Community Center at 130 Grand Avenue.
