The Maricopa County Community College District has selected three finalists for the next chief of police of the system. 

A search committee comprised of college, student and community members conducted a screening and preliminary interviews with applicants to identify those best suited to lead the MCCCD Police Department, a district release explained.

Public forums for the finalists will be held on Tuesday, Nov. 5, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The forums are open to students, employees, and the general public and may be attended virtually or in person at Rio Salado College in the first-floor conference center.

Finalists are:

Blair Barfuss

• Barfuss brings more than two decades of experience as a law enforcement leader, serving as chief of police at Utah Tech University and Riverton City. 
• Known for his data-driven, community-oriented policing emphasis, Barfuss aims to create safe, inclusive, and supportive environments that serve the diverse needs of campus communities through transparency and collaboration while focusing on current industry and legal best practices and agency accreditation. 
• Barfuss is a graduate of the FBI National Academy. He earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice administration from Columbia College and a master’s degree in human resources with an emphasis on organizational management from Utah State University.

Joel Justice

• Justice has over 37 years of law enforcement experience. He served as chief of police of Ventura County Community College for eight years, where he was responsible for three colleges, a satellite campus, a fire academy, a district office, and 38,000 faculty, staff, and students, as well as 53 employees. 
• Prior to that assignment, Justice spent 29 years with the Los Angeles Police Department, retiring as captain. While working for the LAPD, he held assignments in investigations, patrol, tactical response, and undercover operations. 
• Justice earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Phoenix and a master’s degree from the Naval Postgraduate School.

Louis Scichilone

• Scichilone has served the Arizona law enforcement community for more than 26 years. His leadership began as a cavalry scout and operations & logistics specialist in the United States Army. In 1996, Scichilone joined the Arizona State University Police Department.
• He earned a bachelor's degree in justice studies from ASU and is completing post-baccalaureate work at Northern Arizona University. 
• Scichilone is a graduate of the Arizona Problem-Oriented Leadership Institute for Chief & Command Executives, ASU’s Mastering Leadership programs and Northwestern University School of Police Staff & Command.

You can learn more about each candidate and read their full bios here.