BOCA RATON, FL (Boca Post) (Copyright © 2026) — Boca Raton is opening a national search for its next police chief, starting a leadership transition at one of Palm Beach County’s most visible public safety agencies.
The move comes as Acting Police Chief Liz Roberts prepares for a possible departure after more than 20 years with the Boca Raton Police Department. The city said Roberts has received a conditional offer for another professional opportunity, but will remain in her current role during the transition and take part in the hiring process.
That means the city is not yet naming a successor. Instead, Boca Raton is putting the job on the market and looking nationwide for a chief to lead the department through its next phase, including long-range planning and future police facility needs.
City Manager Mark Sohaney is leading the process from the city administration side. Under Boca Raton’s council-manager form of government, the City Council sets policy and priorities, while the city manager oversees daily operations and key department leadership. For the police chief position, that places the role squarely inside the city’s executive leadership structure, reporting directly to the city manager and helping carry out broader city priorities.
The city is looking for a chief with significant command experience, strong executive presence, and the ability to lead complex operations while maintaining public trust. The recruiting materials describe the ideal candidate as visible, collaborative and community-minded, with a focus on transparency, accountability, team development and modern policing practices.
The job itself carries broad authority. The next chief will oversee patrol, investigations, administration and support services, manage personnel and budgeting, direct emergency preparedness and critical incident response, serve as the city’s lead advisor on law enforcement matters, and oversee Internal Affairs and citizen complaint investigations.
For residents, the search matters beyond a title change.
The Boca Raton Police Services Department is a full-service municipal agency with 220 sworn officers and 113 civilian employees. It includes patrol, investigations, traffic, K-9, marine, motor, recruitment, accreditation, internal affairs and dispatch functions, along with specialty teams such as SWAT, bomb, dive, crisis negotiation and drone operations. The department is also a regular public-facing presence in neighborhoods, schools, homeowner associations and city events.
The city’s recruitment materials also lean heavily on Boca Raton’s size and profile. Boca Raton serves more than 100,000 residents and 14,000 businesses, according to the brochure, and city leaders are framing the search as a chance to find a chief who can lead through growth while maintaining service levels and community confidence.
Roberts is expected to help bridge that transition. The city said Captains Seth Dubinsky and Drew Kosova will serve as acting assistant chiefs during the process, adding support to the department’s leadership team.
Applicants are being asked to bring at least a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice, public administration or a related field, along with 10 years of progressively responsible law enforcement experience and at least five years of supervisory and command-level experience. A master’s degree is preferred. Florida law enforcement certification is required, though out-of-state candidates may qualify if they can obtain certification within a specified timeframe. The city also requires completion of an executive-level law enforcement leadership program, such as the FBI National Academy, Southern Police Institute, Northwestern’s School of Police Staff and Command, the Senior Management Institute for Police, the FDLE Senior Leadership Program, or an equivalent program.
The pay range is listed at $225,000 to $245,000, with possible relocation assistance of up to $5,000 for out-of-area candidates.
The posting is scheduled to remain open through April 6, with application review beginning April 8. The city said the hiring process will include virtual and in-person interviews. Any final offer will depend on a lengthy post-offer screening process that includes a criminal background check with fingerprinting, employment verification, license verification, credit check, reference checks, polygraph, psychological exam, physical, drug and alcohol screening, pulmonary function testing and a motor vehicle records check.
Candidates should also expect less privacy than in many private-sector executive searches. The city notes that Florida’s public records laws may make candidate information tied to the search subject to disclosure upon request.
What residents should watch now is simple: who applies, how public the process becomes, and how Boca Raton defines the department’s next chapter. The search is open. Roberts remains in place for now. The city’s next police chief has not been selected.
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