Six in lineup for CVMO top cop position

The names of the six finalists being considered for the job of next top cop at the Camp Verde Marshal’s Office were revealed last week.

Town Manager Russ Martin released the names before heading into a battery of interviews with each candidate, followed by meet-and-greet sessions with the town’s department heads and members of the Camp Verde Town Council.

The six were selected from a list of 80 applicants seeking to take over the position once current Camp Verde Marshal Dave Smith retires Saturday, Dec. 31.

Three of the candidates currently hold law enforcement positions in Arizona, while three hail from out of state.

Candidates include Sedona Police Department Cmdr. Ron Wheeler, Marc Denney with the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office, Nancy Gardner with the Avondale Police Department, Zephry Bingham with the police department in Plattsburg, Mo., John Dyer with the police force in Oak Harboe, Wash., and David Banaszynski with the Shorewood, Wis., police force.

Wheeler is currently field operations commander for SPD and has been employed with the agency since 2002. Prior to that, Wheeler worked for the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office starting in 1995 and has earlier experience working as a firefighter in Canada.

Denney, who serves as a commander in enforcement with the Cochise County Sheriff’s Office, has nearly a quarter century of experience in law enforcement.

Gardner originally hails from North Dakota, but moved to Arizona in 1986 where she worked 16 years with the Gilbert Police Department, including a stint as a SWAT team commander. She was awarded Officer of the Year in 1995 and 1999, and was nominated for Supervisor of the Year in 2006. Gardner holds a master’s degree from Northern Arizona University and is a graduate from the School of Police Staff and Command at Northwestern University in Chicago.

Bingham currently serves as the chief of a small police department in Plattsburg, Mo., a town of about 2,300 residents, according to the 2010 census.

Dyer works as a patrol lieutenant with the Oak Harbor Police Department, a town located on Washington’s Whidbey Island. Dyer is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and a graduate of the FBI Academy.

Rounding out the list of finalists is Banaszynski, chief of Wisconsin’s Shorewood Police Department, a position he has held since 2005. Banaszynski, also an FBI Academy graduate, was hired by the Shorewood Police Department in 1981, working his way through the ranks in his hometown over the years. Banasynski holds a Master of Science in management, and a Bachelor of Science in criminal justice administration.

Martin conducted the interviews Thursday, Dec. 15, along with three local chiefs of police, three Town Council members and two CVMO employees.

Martin said he will announce the new town marshal shortly after the first of the year.

“We just want to go over everything carefully and make the right decision,” Martin said.