When asked how he feels about becoming Sedona’s newest chief of police, Charles Husted was almost speechless. “I have yet to discover a word that adequately describes my level of excitement in being selected,” he said. 

“The honor is tremendous and I am humbled to be considered among a highly qualified pool of candidates.  

“I am bursting at the seems to begin working alongside the talented women and men that make up Sedona PD, along with the fantastic cadre of city employees and of course the wonderful community members that populate the city of Sedona. I am looking forward to engaging and partnering with the community and building upon our community policing and service-minded initiatives.” 

Husted officially accepted the job on Monday, March 11. This followed a full day’s worth of interviews four days earlier with the Sedona City Council, community panels and City Manager Justin Clifton. Husted said he was relieved at the end of the day and felt as if he had put everything on the table.  

“I was also exhausted when the interviews concluded because my nerves had me awake by 

 3 a.m.,” he said. 

“Although I was very nervous going into the day, I knew that it was important to focus on being myself.” 

And it worked. 

“Charles has exceptional interpersonal and leadership skills that will serve Sedona well,” Clifton said. 

“In all my years hiring top positions, I’ve never seen a broader consensus on a candidate, which is saying a lot given that we had an exceptionally talented group of contenders.” 

He added that all six of the final candidates could have excelled in the job. 

“The fact that Charles was the top choice in spite of such strong competition leads me to believe we have a truly special leader,” Clifton said. 

“I said throughout the process it was more important to make the right choice than to make a choice quickly. I feel supremely confident we made the right choice.  I look forward to seeing him in action soon.” 

Husted has spent his entire 30-year law enforcement career in Sacramento, where he rose to the rank of captain. After graduating high school, his goal was to become a pediatrician, but, after listening to a police recruiter during a criminal justice course, his career went in a different direction. 

“After several specific onduty incidents, I knew very clearly in my heart that public service as a police officer was where I needed to be in life,” he said.  

“Even during some very challenging and difficult experiences, I’ve appreciated every day of my career. I will always love my hometown of Sacramento and am very thankful for the opportunities I’ve had at the Sacramento Police Department.  

“My broad experiences and exposure to vast examples of quality leadership in Sacramento have helped prepare me for the incredible responsibility of leading the Sedona Police

Department.“ 

Husted said he expects to be on the job on or near Monday, April 29. A more in-depth interview with him will appear in a future edition.