Former Bainbridge Island Police Chief Jon Fehlman applied for at least one police chief position this year before resigning his post Sept. 15.
Fehlman applied for a position as chief of police in Port St. Lucie, Fla., in February. Fehlman was one of 46 applicants for the south Florida job, according to the TC Palm newspaper. Florida state law requires applicants for public office to be made public.
Fehlman’s application, provided to the Sun by the TC Palm (and posted here), lists former Bainbridge City Manager Brenda Bauer as a reference. In his resume, Fehlman highlighted close relationships he said he built on the island and with outside agencies.
“I am accessible to the community and work tirelessly with all stakeholder to achieve common goals,” Fehlman wrote.
Fehlman was hospitalized with pancreatitis in May, shortly before a federal judge began hearing testimony in a lawsuit filed against the city by the family of a mentally ill man shot and killed by police in 2010. Fehlman remained on leave from the department until his resignation this month. He negotiated with the city for six months of severance pay and benefits, according to interim City Manager Morgan Smith.
On Wednesday a federal judge heard arguments from City of Bainbridge lawyers asking for a stay of the $1 million award to the Ostling family. The city also asked for a retrial based on Fehlman’s inability to testify during the hearings this spring. The judge will decide by Friday whether to grant the stay and order a new trial.
