Monroe police commander is a finalist for Burlington chief

By Vince Richardson / Skagit Valley Herald

BURLINGTON — The city of Burlington has narrowed its search for a police chief to four candidates.

The final four will take part in a public reception at 5 p.m. Monday at the City Council Chambers, 833 S. Spruce St., that will include a meet and greet as well as short presentations by each candidate.

The finalists for the position vacated by Mike Luvera, who resigned in July after seven years as chief, are Paul Ryan, Ronald Schaub, Kevin Turner and Shawn Boyle.

“I am super excited,” Mayor Bill Aslett said. “We have four great candidates … We actually had nine applicants that had good qualifications. Then those applicants were narrowed down to the four and again, the four we have, I am really excited about.”

Ryan is administrative commander with the city of Monroe.

He began his career in law enforcement as a patrol officer with that department in 2005, and served as an assistant patrol sergeant, a patrol sergeant and a detective.

Schaub has been police chief of the Fircrest Police Department since 2023 after spending 28 years with the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office.

Turner has 28 years of law enforcement experience, including 12 as a police chief. He was chief in Grantsville City, Utah, for about five years, and has been chief of the Ferndale Police Department since 2017.

Boyle began his career in law enforcement in 1996 with the Yakima Police Department. Over the next 28 years, he served as an officer, sergeant, lieutenant, captain and is now the city’s interim chief.

“These four all have relevant experience in the state of Washington,” Aslett said. “And had experience serving somewhat close to us or from communities that shared similarities to that of Burlington.”

As far as a timeline for filling the position, there remains a ways to go, Aslett said.

“This is a significant position within the city and we want to make sure we do everything right,” he said. “I am really hopeful we find the person who wants to come in here and become part of this community. I believe that’s incredibly valuable, the head of your police department has to be engaged in the community at all levels.”