Former Police Chief Kevin Murphy Talks Retirement and Whether He’s Running for Office
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As of Wednesday, former Montgomery Police Chief Kevin Murphy is officially retired. He made the announcement four months ago at a tense press conference with the mayor, who he says forced him out of the job. Since then, Murphy’s been on paid leave. We sat down with Murphy to talk about policing, politics, and whether he’ll run for office.
Looking back on the June press conference, Murphy says the day he announced his retirement was difficult. “It was a very upsetting thing. my brother had just passed away and then they fired me.”
At the time, Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange said former and current police officers told him Murphy’s management style made for a hostile work environment. Murphy says he doesn’t regret anything about his career or how it ended.
“I can’t keep looking in the rearview mirror. I have to keep looking forward,” Murphy said.
Murphy doesn’t have a new job lined up, but he isn’t ruling out a run for mayor.
“I don’t want anyone to think I’m running for mayor just because I was removed from office. That’s the worst reason in the world to run for mayor. You want a mayor that’s passionate about the city and cares about the citizens, and that’s the first and primary reason that I would run”, Murphy said.
Murphy says he won’t decide whether he’s running for anything until next year.
City officials and Murphy agreed to hold off his official retirement date until October 1, which begins a new fiscal year. Interim Police Chief John Brown is heading up the Montgomery Police Department until the mayor makes a permanent appointment.
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