At the heart of the controversy is Issue 5, the city charter amendment passed by the voters last fall to crack the insular hierarchy of the police department. Issue 5 changed the selection process to allow the manager to go outside the department to hire the chief and assistant chiefs.

        The impact on the police department of going “outside” will be huge. It will break a mold as old as the department. Until now, every chief has started out as a patrolman and worked his way up to the top, one rank at a time. It's an honored progression — an indoctrination on the streets in Districts One or Four, progressive supervisory roles in other districts with maybe a detour into plainclothes or one of the investigative units, eventually a captaincy, district command and then, if you're still in the flow, the bump to assistant chief. There usually have been only four or five assistants and from their ranks — always — have come the chiefs.

        After the riots in 2001 there was much talk about the need to change the “culture” of the police department — a culture many thought institutionalized racism and fostered an “us-against-them” approach to community relations. The hope was that Issue 5 would force greater diversity — racially and philosophically — into the upper ranks.

        But Issue 5 also grandfathered in the current chief and his assistants, all of who are young enough that they could conceivably stay put for another decade. Cultural changes in that environment were likely to be incremental.

        Ron Twitty's car accident changed all that. When the assistant chief copped a plea that included retirement from the force, it gave Ms. Lemmie an unanticipated chance to have a dramatic impact on the department. It's an opportunity she can be expected to take full advantage of.

        She may not know who the replacement will be yet — indeed she has plans for full citizen input in a search she predicts will take months. She said she hopes the FOP will join in the process. She even wants to put the finalists on cable TV for public inspection. The position will be open to those already on the force, as well as outsiders, but she will pick a newcomer. She has to, and she should.

        That's the only way the city keeps faith with those who voted for change — a change widely seen as a positive step in healing the city after the riots.

        The speculation and concern among the FOP, is that first she'll bring in an outsider to fill the assistant chief's position. Chief Thomas Streicher has been on the force since 1974 and could leave with a comfortable pension. Sooner or later he will go, and when he does, the manager will have an “outsider” already on the inside to move into the top job.

        But first she has to get past the FOP.

        The FOP is a guardian of the status quo. The union believes Issue 5 violated its contract with the city. Assistant chiefs, and the way they get promoted, are covered by that contract, which expires in December. Under the contract there also is a civil service list of captains eligible for promotion to assistant chief. That list expires Oct. 23. In the union's view, no one can be hired from outside the department while the contract is in force, and Ron Twitty should be replaced right now with the next captain on the promotion list. The union has filed suit over the first issue and will file a grievance over the second as soon as Ms. Lemmie make a move outside the department to replace Col. Twitty.

        Issue 5 was seen as a key tool needed to improve management of the city under the new “strong mayor” form of government. It's a fundamental change in the way the city operates. The administration believes it can beat the legal challenges of the FOP, says Mayor Charlie Luken. “Issue 5 is what we should follow. It's what the voters asked for,” he said.

        It remains to be seen if the mayor and his manager will be able to deliver on that demand.

        Contact David Wells at 768-8310; fax: 768-8610; e-mail: dwells@enquirer.com.

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