Four finalists — all from out of state — were selected as candidates for Tucson's police chief, the city said Monday night. No candidates from the local police department made the finalists' list.

The finalists are:

• Malik Aziz, deputy chief of Dallas Police Department.
• Larry B. Esquivel, chief of police of San Jose Police Department, who is retiring from that job at the end of the year.
• Rick S. Gregory, vice president and senior research associate at the Institute for Intergovernmental Research in Tallahassee, Florida. He previously served more than 20 years with the Florida Highway Patrol, and has also served as police chief in Provo, Utah.
• Christopher J. Magnus, chief of police of Richmond, California, Police Department

The finalists will interview with the city's Police Chief Appointment Advisory Committee at a public meeting Oct. 29, said Lane Mandle, a city spokeswoman Monday, in a news release.

There are 15 members on the committee. The public meeting will be in the City Council's chambers in city hall at 255 W. Alameda St.

Separate interviews will be held with the Tucson Police Officers' Association, Tucson Police Department command staff, and the city's executive leadership team, Mandle said.

City Manager Michael Ortega will receive input from all three groups.

"I look forward to receiving input from both internal and external stakeholder groups as we move toward the selection for this important position," said Ortega in the release. 

"I am confident we will find a chief committed to applying the principles of community policing to deliver a high-level of services to residents," Ortega said.

Tucson Police Chief Roberto Villaseñor is set to retire in December. He has served with the police department for 35 years.

The city contracted with the Police Executive Research Forum to conduct the national search, and assist with the three-part hiring process, Mandle said.

The research forum screened the initial applications and provided Ortega with 60 applicants.

A competitive interview process was then used to select the finalists, Mandle said.

Reposted from the Arizona Daily Star.

Photo: SF Gate