Lafayette Live: What Should Qualify The Next Lafayette Police Chief? (Audio)

Right now, Lafayette's "top cop," as Castille calls the position of police chief, is interim chief Reginald “Reggie” Thomas.

While LCG is in the market for a permanent replacement for former chief Jim Craft, talks of the potential candidates' qualifications have surfaced.

LCG Council Chairman Jay Castille said while a police chief, or fire chief, candidate with a degree would suit the position well, a candidate with years of experience is also a plus.

It's a balancing act," Castille told KPEL's Bernadette Lee this morning. "You have to have both. It's something that keeps everybody on the same playing field.

Castille said he served as a firefighter for 20 years. During that time. he said, he had always assumed fire chief candidates were required to have at least a bachelor's degree to qualify.

But at last night's LCG Council meeting, Councilman Kenneth Boudreaux shared information stating experience alone may have been enough to qualify for the fire chief position.

That is something that everyone strives for is to get to that top job," Castille said."To find out that the opportunity actually may have presented itself and no one told us about it...is kinda nerve-racking.

Castille asid Wednesday morning he still has some research to do on the subject of leadership qualificationsfollowing Boudreaux's

Click the photo above to hear Bernadette Lee's full interview with LCG Chairman Jay Castille.

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