INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Mayor Joe Hogsett on Wednesday named Assistant Chief Christopher Bailey as the acting chief of the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department.

Bailey, a 25-year veteran of the Indianapolis Police Department/IMPD, most recently served as second in command to former IMPD Chief Randal Taylor. Taylor stepped down as chief of police to take on a different role within the department.

“Chief Bailey has been charged with immediately beginning to work with local criminal justice experts to recommend operational changes necessary to modernize the department in line with these efforts,” the mayor’s office said in a release.

The study will recommend strategies to improve officer recruitment and retention as well as a comprehensive outside review of police shootings, the mayor’s office says.

As acting police chief, Bailey has removed himself as a candidate for permanent appointment as the chief of police at this time.

Bailey will serve as acting chief while Mayor Hogsett continues the internal process of selecting a permanent replacement for Chief Taylor.

“I am focused on naming a permanent Chief of Police as expeditiously as possible while remaining thoughtful about the best leader to ensure our officers are supported through the challenges ahead for the department in a time when the profession of policing is changing rapidly,” Hogsett said in a release.

Outgoing IMPD Chief Randal Taylor transitioned Wednesday to his new role as commander of IMPD’s victim services section. He is expected to remain with the department for another year and a half.

The appointment of acting chief is standard procedure when the sworn chief of police is unavailable, indisposed, or a vacancy is created.