Fort Worth police chief applied, interviewed for Baltimore job, mayor says

While Fort Worth police and the mayor’s office say Chief Joel Fitzgerald hasn’t accepted a new position yet, the mayor’s office confirmed that he applied and interviewed for the open police commissioner job in Baltimore.

“That was what Chief Fitzgerald told Mayor (Betsy) Price via phone yesterday afternoon,” Price secretary Laken Rapier said Saturday morning.

“He told her he’d interviewed for it but didn’t say whether he’d made a decision,” Rapier said.

On Friday, the mayor’s office said that Fitzgerald had not said he was leaving and had not submitted a letter of resignation.

Unnamed sources told Star-Telegram media partner WFAA that Fitzgerald was likely to leave and take the Baltimore job.

Fitzgerald has not responded to requests for comment.

Saturday marked his third anniversary as the chief of Fort Worth police. He’s originally from Philadelphia.

The mayor’s office in Baltimore has not commented on whether Fitzgerald is being considered for police commissioner.

This story was originally published October 20, 2018 at 10:42 AM with the headline "Fort Worth police chief applied, interviewed for Baltimore job, mayor says."