The city of Cape Girardeau announced the hiring of Wes Blair as the city’s new police chief on Tuesday.
Blair is a 16 year law enforcement veteran who currently serves as the assistant police chief in Lancaster, Texas, where he also worked as the interim chief.
Cape Girardeau city manager Scott Meyer called Blair “a good fit.”
"He’s been a proven leader in both good and bad times,” Meyer said. “They’ve had some difficult times, even during his interim leadership in which he performed well. He’s an innovator. He’s been able to find ways to get difficult things done."
Blair will start the job later this summer. He will replace interim chief Roger Fields, who has been filling in since the retirement of Carl Kinnison last year.
“We think that Wes is a real strong candidate that can enable our very professional force to move forward and to take the next step up,” Meyer said.
The city spent 10 months looking for a new police chief. Meyer said there were no internal candidates for the position.