Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Council rejects mayoral pick for police chief; city administrator’s nominee is approved
Summary
After a contentious public-comment period and legal debate over appointment authority, the council voted down the mayor’s motion to appoint Captain Dave Hagar and later approved the city administrator’s appointment of Greg Yager as police chief.
Mayor Ron Gookin placed the appointment of Captain Dave Hagar before the City Council for approval after a months‑long selection process that divided council members and drew dozens of speakers to the public‑comment period.
The meeting featured extended legal argument about who has the authority to appoint department heads in Coeur d’Alene. City Attorney Randy Adams told council that city personnel rules designate the police chief as a department head and that, under those adopted rules and Idaho law (citing Idaho Code §50‑204 and the Idaho Supreme Court decision discussed in Bunt v. Garden City referenced by the attorney), appointment authority for department heads lies with the city administrator rather than the mayor. The mayor testified he had obtained an outside legal opinion that gave him…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
