South Bend Mayor James Mueller has opened an internal selection process to choose the city’s next police chief.

The process is open to current South Bend Police Department division chiefs and captains. Mueller expects to announce his choice before Chief Scott Ruszkowski leaves the department at the end of the year.

Ruszkowski, who joined the department in 1988, has served as South Bend’s 62nd police chief since 2015. He was elected St. Joseph County sheriff during last week’s election.

Mueller thanked Ruszkowski for nearly four decades of service and said the next chief must earn the trust of both officers and the neighborhoods they serve.