The finalists in the running for Mandan police chief include two Mandan officers, two with experience in the New York Police Department, a man who has served as chief for three departments and a former lieutenant from a police department in Illinois.

The six finalists have until Friday to respond in writing to a series of 18 questions, and a committee will review the responses to determine which candidates will be interviewed for the position. The city plans to hold interviews in mid-September.

Acting Mandan Police Chief Dennis Bullinger and Lt. Paul Leingang are two of six finalists for the position.

Bullinger, who has been with the Mandan Police Department since 1973, has been the department's deputy chief since 1986. He has a bachelor's degree in management from the University of Mary and has been serving as the interim chief since former chief Dennis Rohr's retirement in March.

Leingang has been in law enforcement for 27 years and has a bachelor's degree in management from the University of Mary. He currently supervises detectives and the youth services division.

Other finalists for the position come from New York, New Jersey, Texas and Illinois.

Nick Basso, of Garwood, N.J., is retired from the New York City Police Department and has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from St. John's University. During 20 years with the department, Basso served as a patrol officer, a sergeant and a lieutenant in the department, and he was the Patrol Borough Staten Island liaison to department headquarters during the World Trade Center disaster.

Robert Circle, who has 32 years of law enforcement experience, has served as chief of police in Texas City, Texas; Dodge City, Kan.; and Maize, Kan. He also was the executive assistant to the chief of police in Wichita, Kan. Circle has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice administration from Wichita State University and has recently worked as a consultant for the U.S. Department of State at the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.

Ralph DelSardo, of Massapequa, N.Y., is retired from the New York City Police Department and has a bachelor's degree in criminal justice from Empire State College, a State University of New York. DelSardo worked in the department for 22 years, and his last position was as a lieutenant in the community affairs bureau, youth services section. He currently works as director of security for Professional Security Consultants in Bay Shore, N.Y.

Christian Jauch Jr. has 30 years of law enforcement experience and recently retired from the Peru, Ill., Police Department. Jauch is in the process of completing a bachelor's degree through Governor's State University. He most recently served in the department as a lieutenant shift commander with responsibility for the department's computer network, grant administration and 911 systems. Before 2007, he was an administrative assistant to the chief of police.

(Reach reporter Jenny Michael at 250-8225 or jenny.michael@;bismarcktribune.com.)