Fort Worth’s next police chief: Sources confirm four finalists to WFAA — including former Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia

FORT WORTH, Texas — The Fort Worth Police Department has been in need of a new top cop since December 2024, when then-Chief Neil Noakes confirmed to WFAA that he planned to step down from his post in May of this year.

Now, Fort Worth is one step closer to naming Noakes’ permanent replacement. 

WFAA has confirmed that Fort Worth City Council members were informed via email on Monday by the search firm hired to find the city’s next police chief that four finalists have been selected following the conclusion of the firm’s national search. 

According to sources who confirmed three of the four finalists’ names to WFAA, the city is considering internal and external candidates with deep ties to North Texas and national recognition for law enforcement leadership and reform. 

Those finalists include Fort Worth Interim Police Chief Robert Alldredge, former Dallas Deputy Chief Vernon Hale III, Los Angeles Police Department Deputy Chief Emada Tingirides and former Dallas Police Chief Eddie Garcia.

Below, let’s take a closer look at each of the confirmed finalists for the gig, presented alphabetically. None of the candidates listed have officially commented to WFAA on whether they have been named a finalist.

Alldredge has been serving as interim police chief since May, following the retirement of Chief Neil Noakes. A 25-year veteran of the department, Alldredge has worked his way up through the ranks since joining Fort Worth PD in 1999. 

He currently oversees the Finance/Personnel Bureau and previously led Tactical Operations, Professional Standards and Central Patrol.

Alldredge holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in criminal justice from Tarleton State University and is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. A U.S. Air Force veteran, he’s known inside the department for his methodical leadership and operational experience.

“In my experience and those of us here on the dais, you have served faithfully and diligently in your capacity as assistant chief,” District 2 councilmember Carlos Flores said of Alldredge upon his being named interim chief. “I support your selection as interim police chief because I have the utmost confidence in your knowledge and expertise as well as your professional character and your personal demeanor, because you need all that when dealing with the most challenging issues that come at us as a city and as a police department.” 

While respected internally, community activists have said they’re watching closely to see whether the city will select a leader who prioritizes accountability and reform.

Garcia left his role in Dallas in October of last year, taking an assistant city manager role in Austin under former Dallas City Manager T.C. Broadnax. Dallas has since hired former FBI official Daniel Comeaux to replace Garcia.

Garcia’s departure from Dallas was announced as his decision to retire from law enforcement, despite his having previously committed to stay with the city until 2027. 

Born in Puerto Rico, Garcia became Dallas’ first Latino chief in February 2021. He was previously the police chief in San Jose, Calif., where he had spent nearly 30 years with the department. 

In Dallas, Garcia replaced Chief U. Renee Hall, who decided in 2020 to leave the role as Dallas’ top cop. Garcia was selected for the Dallas job over six other finalists, including four from within the Dallas Police Department ranks. 

Garcia said last September he was leaving Dallas at a time when he believed the department is in better shape than when he took over three and a half years ago, citing a fourth straight year of decreasing violent crime statistics, improved officer morale and increase department trust within the community.

”There’s never a right time to go,” Garcia told WFAA in a one-on-one interview upon his departure. “But I also didn’t want to give the keys to a broken department to someone. So, when people say why is he leaving now, you know when things are going positive that’s the time to leave,” Garcia said.

In the same interview with WFAA, Garcia said he wanted to make it clear that he was not leaving because of Dallas City Hall politics or disputes between Mayor Eric Johnson, whom Garcia said he likes and respects. He also denied that his departure had anything to do with then-proposed amendments to the city charter — two of which voters later approved in November — that would make it easier to sue the city and put requirements on the department to increase its force by 900 officers.

“I’m not leaving because of any ballot measures,” Garcia said. “I’m not leaving for acrimony. I’m leaving because it’s my time to retire from law enforcement. And there’s an opportunity to work with individuals that I respect greatly.”

Garcia said leaving policing after more than 30 years was one of the most difficult decisions of his life.

”I was a kid from Puerto Rico,” he said. “I didn’t speak English. And if it wasn’t for the San Jose Police Department, and the men and women of that department, I would have never gotten here. If it wasn’t for the men and women of the Dallas Police Department, I would never get my next opportunity. I’m very happy that people gave me a chance. It’s been a tremendous ride that I will look fondly on.”

Hale, who grew up in Oak Cliff and graduated from Dallas’ Kimball High School, spent more than two decades with the Dallas Police Department. Rising to the rank of deputy chief over the course of his time with DPD, he held leadership roles in narcotics, special operations, training and media relations.

He later became police chief in Galveston, where he served for three years and received the NAACP’s 2019 Community Champion Award. 

In 2021, he was hired as an assistant chief in Prince George’s County, Maryland — one of the largest law enforcement agencies in the region.

Hale has drawn praise for both his community engagement and his handling of public scrutiny, including in high-profile use-of-force cases.

Tingirides is one of the most recognizable reform advocates in urban policing. A deputy chief with the Los Angeles Police Department, she is best known for co-creating the Community Safety Partnership (CSP), a nationally recognized model for relationship-based policing in underserved communities.

She launched the CSP Bureau in 2020 and was named Governing Magazine’s Public Official of the Year in 2015. Tingirides has been honored at the White House and included on lists of LA’s most influential leaders.

Her work has been credited with lowering crime and building trust in neighborhoods long plagued by violence and strained police relationships.

This is a developing story. It will be updated with more information as it becomes available.