Cincinnati is once again hitting the pause button on a decision about its police chief. City officials have extended the outside review of Police Chief Teresa Theetge to March 31, keeping her on paid administrative leave while investigators keep digging into her leadership of the department.
Theetge has been sidelined since October while outside counsel evaluates how she has handled the job. In the meantime, Interim Chief Adam Hennie is running day-to-day operations as interviews and document review continue behind the scenes.
City Confirms New Deadline
City Communications Director Mollie Lair told FOX19 that the review now runs through March 31 and said this second extension "comes at no cost." The original contract with outside counsel was set to end Dec. 31 and budgeted for up to about $40,000. That agreement was amended in December to push the timeline to Feb. 28 for an additional $9,000, WVXU reported.
How the Review Began
City Manager Sheryl Long placed Theetge on paid administrative leave in October after a string of high-profile shootings, and the city tapped Frost Brown Todd to run an external review into the chief's leadership. The contract’s objectives — evaluating leadership effectiveness, alignment with administration goals, potential policy or policy-practice failures, and any impacts on public safety — were laid out in the agreement, CityBeat noted.
Chief Theetge has spent more than 30 years with the Cincinnati Police Department and was sworn in as the city’s 16th chief in January 2023, according to the City of Cincinnati.
Legal Pushback and Public Response
Theetge’s employment attorney, Stephen Imm, has blasted the probe as a “charade” and accused the mayor and city manager of turning the chief into a political scapegoat, FOX19 reported.
Outside City Hall, the standoff has sparked a visible show of loyalty. Family members and retired officers have rallied in support of Theetge, and activists have posted “I stand with Police Chief Theetge” signs across town, according to WVXU.
What Comes Next
The March 31 deadline gives outside counsel more time to finish interviews and sift through records before delivering conclusions about Theetge’s leadership. The city has said it will only provide updates when it is appropriate and legally permissible, WCPO reported.
Mayor Aftab Pureval has defended the decision to launch and extend the review, underscoring that public safety remains the administration’s top priority. For now, though, Cincinnati residents are still waiting to find out whether their long-serving chief returns to duty or becomes the latest shakeup in city leadership.
