Nampa police chief will leave next month

It's official: Nampa Police Chief Craig Kingsbury will leave his post Dec. 17 to take the top job at the Twin Falls Police Department, Nampa Mayor Bob Henry said Tuesday.

Kingsbury, a 24-year veteran of the Nampa department who has been chief for 21 months, will become the Twin Falls chief Jan. 1.

“Twin Falls is lucky to bring Chief Kingsbury on board,” Henry said. “Craig has been a dedicated city servant, an active community volunteer and an excellent chief.”

Henry said he hopes to find Nampa’s next police chief within the ranks of the Nampa Police Department. That has been the city's pattern in recent years: Kingsbury was deputy chief to predecessor LeRoy Forsman, who was second-in-command to Bill Augsburger. The list stretches back further: Augsburger and predecessors Curtis Homer, Alan Creech and Marshall Brisbin all were promoted from within.

“We will accept internal applications from Nampa Police Department’s qualified leadership team, and I hope to have a decision in December so a formal recommendation can be made to the City Council Jan. 4 after the new council members are sworn in,” Henry said in a news release.

Tuesday's news didn't come as a surprise: Twin Falls announced Nov. 4 that Kingsbury was the city's pick for the job. After the announcement, Kingsbury told the Statesman leaving Nampa's force was a hard choice, but he looked forward to the new challenges.

This story was originally published November 17, 2015 at 7:37 PM with the headline "Nampa police chief will leave next month."