Dallas’ next police chief will be chosen from eight finalists who include chiefs from Seattle and Los Angeles and three high-ranking members of Dallas Police Department, officials announced Wednesday.

The position has been vacant since October, when Chief David Brown retired at the height of his fame for shepherding the department through the July 7 ambush and its aftermath.

The new chief will be in for a challenge.

Morale has eroded over the years, many officers are still reeling from last summer's deadly ambush, and the new chief will have to be a good communicator with officers and navigate City Hall effectively. External candidates will have the added difficulty of a steep learning curve.

"This is a very hard job," said Frederick Frazier, first vice president of the Dallas Police Association. "It's one of the hardest jobs in America. You have to make everybody happy, and it's impossible."

City Manager T.C. Broadnax will hire Brown’s replacement but is expected to rely on input from others. He said law enforcement officials, faith leaders, police association members and other community leaders will be sorted into panels to interview the candidates next month.

Half of the finalists are from outside Dallas — much like Broadnax, who worked in San Antonio and Tacoma, Wash., before coming to Dallas in February.

The list of candidates was narrowed down to Dallas Deputy Chiefs Malik Aziz and Rick Watson, Dallas Assistant Chief Gary Tittle, Seattle Deputy Chief Carmen Best, Grand Prairie Police Chief Steven Dye, Detroit Deputy Chief U. Renee Hall, Los Angeles First Assistant Chief Michel Moore and Assistant Chief Luther Reynolds of Montgomery County, Md.

Watson is the chief over the north-central patrol division, and Tittle is the narcotics chief and the department's legislative coordinator. Aziz oversees the special investigations division.

Interviews will be July 10-12. Broadnax has said he expects to make the hire by the end of the summer.

The next chief will step into a department that's struggling to do more with fewer officers. Hundreds of experienced police have left the 3,100-officer department in recent years, making it Dallas' smallest force in a decade.

The police associations have blamed high attrition on the city’s pension problems, which led many veteran officers to retire earlier than planned, and officer pay, which is lower than in many other Dallas-area police departments.

Dallas has said it's looking for a chief who is an "inspirational leader and an experienced executive." Brown, the city's longest-serving chief, struggled to maintain the respect of his subordinates and was blamed at times for low morale within the department.

Interim Police Chief David Pughes has led the department since Brown stepped down after six years as chief. Pughes did not apply for the permanent job, saying he still has young children.

"Being the police chief in Dallas," he said after taking over as interim chief, "you really ... have to put the Police Department first."

Former Dallas Assistant Chief Daniel Garcia, who interviewed for the top job in 2010, said the city manager has "an interesting list" of finalists. Garcia, who went on to become Phoenix's chief of police, called Dye "a very good candidate" and said the same of Reynolds, whom he met at an FBI academy. He also said he was glad to see the city considering a slate of internal candidates.

Garcia said the new chief will have to help the department heal from July 7 and "will have to look at the organization and make some very tough decisions as to where do they need these people until the staffing levels improve."

"That's going to take some courage to make those decisions and some backing from the city government," Garcia said.

A glimpse of the finalists:

Dallas Deputy Chief Malik Aziz answers a question at a February 2015 town hall conducted by then-District Attorney Susan Hawk. (Ashley Landis / Staff Photographer)

Malik Aziz, Dallas deputy chief

Aziz, who has been on the Dallas force since 1992, has been a finalist for the top cop job in numerous other cities, including Tucson, Ariz.; San Francisco; Phoenix; San Antonio; and Fayetteville, N.C.

During his time in Dallas, Aziz has headed field services, northwest patrol and support services. He led the Texas State Fair's security for several years and also helped start the Dallas Police Department's bait-car program. He served as president of the Black Police Association of Greater Dallas and is chairman of the National Black Police Association.

Aziz was promoted to deputy chief under Chief David Kunkle but saw his career stagnate during Brown's tenure as chief. Still, the 48-year-old remains a popular commander among the troops.

"I'm looking forward to a competitive process in my home city," Aziz said Wednesday. "I've prepared myself well to be the No. 1 public servant for the citizens of Dallas."

Frazier, the DPA vice president, once worked for Aziz, whom he described as "the epitome of what a general is to the ground troops."

"He really works well with guys who are on the ground," Frazier said.

Dallas Deputy Chief Rick Watson spoke to members of the news media after marijuana plants were discovered on West Ledbetter Drive in July 2010. (File Photo)

Rick Watson, Dallas deputy chief

Watson, an El Paso native, has been in the Dallas Police Department for 40 years. The 63-year-old has worked in several of the department's units, including the media-relations unit, the southwest patrol division and the personnel training division.

Watson, whose mother is Latina, has done a lot of work with the Latino community during his time in Dallas. At one point, he tutored and mentored Spanish-speaking first-graders, teaching them how to speak English. In 1993, he was director of the Dallas Police Rodeo Association.

Watson, who now oversees the north-central patrol division, could not be reached for comment about his selection as a finalist for the chief job.

"His station and where he's at — you don't hear very many complaints," Frazier said. "He gets the job done. Just like everybody who is internal on this list, he's been getting the job done with less."

Ulysha Renee Hall, Detroit deputy police chief

Ulysha Renee Hall (LinkedIn)

Hall, 46, is one of two black women on the list, along with Seattle Deputy Chief Carmen Best.

As WXYZ-TV in Detroit reported last year, her father, Ulysses, was a cop working a prostitution case in August 1971 when he was gunned down — a case that remains unsolved. Hall was 6 months old at the time.

"Closure is very important for myself and my family," Hall said last year. "We would like to know what happened. I believe I'm finishing what my dad started."

She has been on the Detroit force for almost two decades, rising in May 2014 to the rank of deputy chief.

Hall has dealt with several issues paralleling crises in Dallas, among them the rising homeless population and loose dogs in impoverished neighborhoods. "Community is the focus," she said during a panel in 2015. "We recognize that to build trust, there must be a two-way street."

She now oversees officers on the entire east side of the city.

Detroit Police Chief James Craig said losing Hall would be a "blow, absolutely," but he was quick to point out that he encouraged her to apply for the job. If nothing else, he said, her hiring in Dallas would be a "testament" to the turnaround of the Detroit department in the years after the city's decision to file for bankruptcy.

"I know her temperament," he said, "and her commitment to the community and the rank and file. We have a saying here: Cops count, but leadership matters. ... Clearly, in my mind, she would be an outstanding chief."

Gary Tittle, Dallas assistant chief of police

Assistant Chief of Police Gary Tittle is also the Dallas Police Department's legislative coordinator. (Twitter)

The police chief gig comes with the added responsibility of dealing with politicians, and Tittle has plenty of experience in that arena. He is the Dallas Police Department's legislative coordinator, which means he spends Texas' legislative sessions in Austin.

Tittle, 51, also heads up the narcotics division and has worked as the central patrol division commander and in the family violence, child abuse and public integrity units in the past.

Tittle earned his college degree in 2008, returning to school to set an example for his daughter. Afterward, Brown promoted him up the ranks quickly. Tittle had served as Brown's administrative aide.

He declined to comment Wednesday on his selection as a finalist for the chief job.

Frazier said Tittle "is an extremely intelligent individual that understands all the aspects of this profession, and he is good at what he does."

Grand Prairie Police Chief Steve Dye (David Woo / Staff Photographer)

Steve Dye, Grand Prairie police chief

Dye started his policing career with the Houston Police Department but found a home in the North Texas suburbs years ago. The Sam Houston State University alum worked in Garland, Arlington and Colleyville — where he was police chief — before becoming Grand Prairie's top cop in 2011.

"I think we've hit a home run. He talked like a leader," the Grand Prairie city manager said at the time.

Dye, who's fluent in Spanish, is an advocate of the community policing approach that Brown promoted while in Dallas.

"One of the keys is you need to understand and get to know your community because that's who you're serving," the chief told The News after he became the Grand Prairie chief.

He also seems to be in tune with what his officers want. Grand Prairie officers added cowboy hats to their uniforms this year, a change the chief supported.

"Years ago, we didn't really know what we know today about the harmful effects of the sun," he said in an interview this month. "We're a lot more aware now and try to take better care of our officers."

Michel Moore, Los Angeles police first assistant chief

Michel Moore (LinkedIn)

Moore, 56, was born in California but grew up in different parts of the country. He joined the Los Angeles Police Department in 1981 and was a finalist for the chief job there in 2009.

The Los Angeles Times reported at the time that Moore was widely credited for helping reduce crime rates in the San Fernando Valley, which he led for more than four years. He was also tasked with helping turn around a division marred by accusations of corruption and abuses.

Moore's LinkedIn page says he has a master's degree in business administration and spent time at Harvard's prestigious John F. Kennedy School of Government, studying what drives government performance.

In an email Wednesday, Moore said he was honored to be chosen as a finalist in Dallas. He said he looks forward to the "opportunity and challenge" the job offers.

"I look forward to the days and weeks ahead when I can more intensively understand how my background, experience and lessens learned in Los Angeles can be of service to the people of Dallas," Moore said.

Carmen Best, Seattle police deputy chief

Carmen Best (Seattle PD / Carmen Best)

Best's boss, Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O'Toole, once described her as "the whole package." In an interview Wednesday, O'Toole said Best has been her "rock" as the second in command for three years.

"What you see is what you get," O'Toole told The News. "She's a real honest broker, and that's why she has great credibility internally and with the community.

Best, who is married and has two daughters, served in the military before joining the Seattle department in 1992. The Western Illinois University alumna's assignments have included uniformed patrol, media relations, narcotics and community outreach.

Best's leadership style may fare well with the Dallas department, which at times struggled with low morale under Brown's leadership.

O'Toole said Best is decisive in tough situations, but she's "incredibly democratic" with the command staff in her day-to-day work. Before devising Seattle's community policing strategy, Best and O'Toole talked to officers in the streets to figure out what would work best for their neighborhoods instead of handing them a strategy to implement.

"Carmen's had to deal with lots of challenges before, and she's been able to help right the ship and help move things forward," O'Toole said. "I'd hate to see her leave, but she's more than ready. She's demonstrated great leadership here in Seattle."

Luther Reynolds, assistant chief of police in Montgomery County, Md.

Luther Reynolds

Reynolds, like many of the other finalists, has had several roles within his department. The 28-year veteran has overseen training, personnel and special operations divisions during his time in Montgomery County, which borders Washington, D.C. He helped the police force create and implement its body-worn camera program, which Dallas also has.

Reynolds also wrote in his cover letter that he has a personal connection to Dallas because he has close family here.

"In addition to professional qualifications, as a lifelong change agent, I have a sense of calling into this important and challenging opportunity," he wrote in the letter.

Staff writer Robert Wilonsky contributed to this report.