Here are some of the nine finalists vying to be HPD's police chief

HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) - The nine finalists to be the next Honolulu Police Chief were notified Friday via email that they will be moving on and will next participate in oral and written exercises on September 26 and 27.

Here are five of the nine candidates that Hawaii News Now has confirmed received the letter from the Honolulu Police Commission:

• Major Susan Ballard:

Ballard has been with HPD since 1986. Ballard made history in 2004 as one of the first two women to become finalists for the chief's job.

• Kauai Police Chief Darryl Perry:

Perry spent 30 years at HPD before taking the top job on Kauai a decade ago.  He's credited with being the first to implement the use of body cameras in the state.

• Retired HPD Major Kurt Kendro:

Kendro was in charge of the Traffic Unit before heading the Leeward Oahu area.  He was awarded the Silver Medal of Valor for saving a woman from a house fire.

• Retired HPD Assistant Chief Kevin Lima:

Lima was head of the Narco/Vice unit for many years before being promoted to Assistant Chief.

• Retired federal agent Thomas Aiu:

Currently heads corporate security for Hawaiian Airlines and recently has been teaching criminal justice at Chaminade.

Four other candidates got emails confirming that they are moving on to the next phase of the search.

The list started with 32, but only 24 showed up for a written exam.

The candidates are vying for the top HPD job after former Chief Louis Kealoha was forced into retirement as the target of an FBI public corruption case in March.

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