It was not immediately known how many candidates remained.

          “I know several numbers have been bandied around,” one source said before the meeting. “But we are not wed to a specific number — six or three or two. It all depends.”

           The first round of elimination was easy and painless, insiders told thefrontpageonline.com.

          One person who saw the original list of sixty-six said the choices were so obvious that fifty-two candidates were trimmed within twenty-five minutes.

          “If you did your homework and reviewed the resumes, it was easy,” the person said. “I mean, not everybody who applied has even been a police officer. They came from across the country. But you could have a former military policeman or someone who has been a security guard on that list.”

          It was learned that the men and women eliminated in the first round were judged so distantly qualified that each of the cuts was virtually unanimous with virtually no argument.

          Where that leaves the four Culver City contenders is not clear.

          There seems little question that Mr. Davies, the only second-time candidate among the Culver City contenders, is the choice of the rank and file.

          A source inside the Police Dept. believes that after a purported sour experience with the lately retired Chief John Montanio, the City Council is firmly committed to reforming a department perceived to need a measure of reining in.

          “Montanio not only left fast (after less than two years),” the source said, “he hardly left an imprint. But he did leave an unpleasant taste.

          “I believe the City Council wants someone who will take charge. They want a strong figure, a person who means business, who will implement fiscal reforms and greater discipline. And I am positive they want someone who will stay at least four or five years. They want the next chief to restore the stability that is missing right now.”