Fairfield Twp. narrows field of police chief candidates to three

After 15 people showed interest in being the next Fairfield Twp. police chief, township officials have a short list of three candidates.

The final three — retired Dayton assistant police chief Robert Chabali, of Dayton, Cincinnati Police Lt. Daniel Ogilvie, of Cincinnati, and Fairfield Twp. acting Police Chief Doug Lanier, of Carlisle — will be interviewed on Thursday.

RELATED: Man who stole Fairfield Twp. police cruiser indicted for crime spree

The township began looking for a new police chief after the sudden resignation of former chief Matt Fruchey at the end of March.

There were 15 that applied and the township interviewed seven of those applicants, including the finalists. They also interviewed Elbert Bush, Jr., of Cincinnati, Benjamin Kramer, of Madison Twp., Alan Lakamp, of Fairfield Twp., and Keith Schoonover, of Mason.

Of the 15 who applied for the job, seven at one point in their career held the title of police chief, and one is currently an acting police chief (Lanier). The final three all have lengthy supervisory experience.

  • Chabali is a retired assistant police chief from the Dayton Police Department. He was the assistant police chief from 2012 until 2015. He spent 36 years with the department.
  • Lanier is the only internal candidate applying for the job and is currently the acting police chief for Fairfield Twp. He's been with the township since June 2001 and started his policing career with the Carlisle Police Department in 1997.
  • Ogilvie is a lieutenant with the Cincinnati Police Department, and has been with the department since the start of his policing career in June 1992.

Trustees will interview the three in executive session on Thursday, the first starting at 6:30 p.m. Trustees have not said when a decision could be made but have said they won’t rule out an additional round of interviews.

RELATED: Fairfield Twp. police chief’s personnel file hinted at resignation

About the Author