ITS ABOUT TIME SPEARS WAS OUT!!

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department will soon have a new leader, Mayor Greg Ballard's office confirmed Monday morning.

Paul Ciesielski, the department's northwest district commander and a 23-year veteran of the department, will be named chief this week, 6News' Jack Rinehart reported.

"I'm very humbled, very excited. I'm ready to go," Ciesielski told Rinehart on Monday. "As far as my plans and vision goes, I'll wait until (the officials announcement on) Thursday to talk about that. Right now, I just want to thank Chief (Michael) Spears for the service he has given."


Ciesielski will replace Spears, who has been at that post since March 2005, and oversaw the merger of Indianapolis police with the Marion County Sheriff's Department.

Spears said he wasn't made aware of the move until after he, Mayor Greg Ballard and Public Safety Director Frank Straub presided over the swearing in of the department's newest recruit class Monday morning.

"I suppose someone in my position, you're never surprised because you serve at the pleasure of the mayor," he said.

Both Ballard and Straub praised Spears' work, but said Ciesielski's name surfaced during interviews that were conducted with focus groups from within the department and in interviews with individual officers.

"When you hear across the department the recognition of his talent, when you hear from the faith-based community talks about his talents, you hear from the community generally about his talents, and I'm sure when you spend some time with him, I'm sure you'll see he's a very energetic and thoughtful person," Straub said.

Straub, in his office for just seven weeks, is an advocate of community policing and aggressive enforcement in high crime areas.

"What I think is interesting is that he (Ciesielski) comes from within IMPD, and Public Safety Director Frank Straub comes from outside IMPD," 6News' political contributor Hakim-Shabazz said. "There had been a question of, 'Do you bring an outsider to take over for the chief and can the outsider do as well?' I think it makes a lot of the rank-and-file officers feel secure."

Ciesielski's wife, Donna, is also a member of the department -- a 25-year veteran officer who currently works an organized crime detail.

An official announcement is expected to happen on Thursday. It was not immediately known what role Spears will take.