The are two types of employees that work for the police department: the sworn employees (which are the uniformed officers that have a badge and a gun), and the civilian staff. The Peoria PD has about 187 sworn officers and about 100 civilian employees. Chief Minter has three commanders who work under him to help insure that the department runs smoothly.
The position of chief of police in and of itself is not political, but there is a lot of contact with different city officials. The city manager hires the chief of police after an exhausting selection process to find the best of the best.
