NICKERSON ? The police chief of a small southcentral Kansas town has resigned in a hiring dispute with town officials.

Former Nickerson police chief April Addis says she also contacted the Hutchinson chapter of the NAACP because she thought council members didn’t want her to hire an officer who is black.

Addis resigned Tuesday night after being reprimanded Nov. 1 by the council.

She told The Hutchinson News Wednesday that the city council didn’t object to three previous hires. But she says when she hired a black man who had worked for the Wichita police department, she was told to tell him he was not getting the job.

But Nickerson Mayor Bill Golding and several council members say Addis’ reprimand had nothing to do with hiring the black officer. Golding says the council had already discussed having more input in police hiring decisions with Addis.