Forum gives Wichita community chance to meet, question police chief finalists

WICHITA, Kan. (KWCH) - For the first time, two chief finalists for the Wichita Police Department had an opportunity to meet with and engage community members. With Tuesday evening’s forum at Botanica, Mario Knapp and Joseph Sullivan fielded questions from the community they’re hoping to serve.

“(We) really did a deep dive into this so we are excited the community gets the chance because this is us together that’s selecting our next police chief. And so we really want the community to come out and ask the questions that they would like to know about each candidate and the direction they would go within the Wichita police department,” said Empower Executive Director and search committee member Ariel Rodriguez.

Wichita Police Foundation Board Chair and search committee member Harvey Sorenson said Knapp and Sullivan have performed well “in a very professional interview setting.”

“They’ve never been exposed in Wichita to our citizens asking questions,” Sorenson said.

Members of the search committee to find Wichita’s next permanent police chief say Knapp and Sullivan have the qualification to lead the WPD. Both have decades of experience serving leadership positions in two large cities in the eastern U.S.

Following more than 25 years of service, Knapp retired from the Miami Dade Police Department in 2021 with the rank of Major. He then went on to work as the vice president of training for Wrap Technologies, which makes specialized restraint systems for law enforcement use. He’s also been running a tactical rappelling training company.

Sullivan served more than 20 years as a deputy commissioner for the Philadelphia Police Department before retiring in 2020. He also runs a charity to support families and children of fallen first responders. After leading the Philadelphia Police Department, Sullivan works for a company selling body armor and personal protection equipment.

Rodriquez and Sorenson said Knapp and Sullivan’s credentials are what separated them from the pack. Now, it’s about how they interact with the people of Wichita.

Rodriguez said he was interested to hear how each candidate plans to represent diverse communities in Wichita.

“Wichita has a lot of different assets, different people in walks of life, so I want to best understand how they bring those communities together,” he said.

Sorenson said he wanted to see reactions from Knapp and Sullivan in how they deal with challenges that come and how they’ll respond to the interest of the community.

“I’m very interested,” he said.

Among questions the candidates fielded Tuesday was how each would combat violence, especially with young people, in Wichita.

“I do promote de-escalation. I also promote a force avoidance framework and that’s what we’re going to try to push,” Knapp said.

Sullivan said he’d make it a point to personally meet with people in neighborhoods across the city.

“I’ll be in every neighborhood in this city, having roundtable discussions, having forums like this, meeting with the community so that you can tell me what you think my priorities should be,” he said.

At Tuesday’s forum, some questioned how each candidate would handle the challenges within the police department and city management which have been brought to light this past year.

“It’s going to be nothing but meeting, listening an intelligence gathering, several days to get to know what’s going on,” Knapp said.

Sullivan indicated he could reach back to past experience for handling new challenges.

“Whatever problem I encounter in Wichita, I’ve probably, or one of my colleagues has dealt with it in Philadelphia and I can always reach back,” he said.

Knapp and Sullivan come from bigger cities than Wichita but both say they want to use their experiences to lead the city.

“I’m looking forward to working in a department that does have some challenges, that will take some work to fix,” Sullivan said. “That I think the experience that I have garnered over many years in Philadelphia gives me the experience I need to take on these challenges.”

Knapp also emphasized accountable.

“I want you to hear me give this same message all the time, so later on you can hold me accountable to that message and I think that’s what needs to happen,” he said.