FERRIDAY — The new chief of police for Ferriday should be chosen by next Monday.

The chief of police’s position is appointed by the mayor rather than elected in Ferriday, and mayor-elect Glen McGlothin will use the recommendation of a four-person panel to help make the final decision.

“The last person let me know (Wednesday) that they would be on it, and so the chief should be chosen either Friday or Monday,” McGlothin said.

McGlothin used the same method for appointing the chief for his third mayoral term after he was elected in 2000.

The four-person panel will be composed of Anna Ferguson, who will also serve as town attorney when the new administration takes over July 1, former police chief and current Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office Chief Investigator Bobby Sheppard, Ferriday businessman Ronnie Freeman and Ferriday resident Otis Hollins.

The panel will meet with each of the 10 applicants for the job for 30 minutes each.

The decision to use the panel was made because it would allow for the perspective of others and McGlothin would not be the only one asking questions of the prospective chief, McGlothin said.

Though he has not served on a panel that would recommend a chief of police before, Freeman said he has conducted job interviews, and he is looking for a candidate who can do something about drugs and raise the standards of the department.

“The people in Ferriday have lost all trust in the police department, and we have got to have someone in that office that can regain the trust of the people back for the department,” Freeman said.

Like the chief’s position, police officers in Ferriday are hired or fired at the discretion of the mayor, and in past statements, McGlothin said hiring the new chief is his first priority so the new chief can sit in and give input when McGlothin hires new officers.

Other committee members could not be reached for comment.