Murphysboro hires law student, ex-sergeant as police chief

MURPHYSBORO, Ill. (AP) - Murphysboro's next police chief is a law student who works in accounting and was a police officer in Alabama.

The (Carbondale) Southern Illinoisan reports (http://bit.ly/2cmWmPD ) Chad Roberts will begin work Sept. 28. He replaces the retiring Brian Hollo.

Roberts has worked since February as financial manager for EWTN Global Catholic Media - a nonprofit based in Irondale, Alabama. He was a Tuscaloosa County Sheriff's sergeant for eight years before that, after serving five years as an investigator.

He's a student at the Birmingham School of Law. He expects to finish in December 2018 with a concentration in contract law and taxation.

Mayor Will Stephens says Roberts was the most qualified of six candidates for the $61,000-a-year job.

The department has 16 full-time officers.

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Information from: Southern Illinoisan, http://www.southernillinoisan.com