Aurora Police Chief Daniel Oates' promotion of three white males to commanders last week raises questions about his commitment to diversify his department, a community activist said Wednesday.

But Oates defended his decision, saying the people he promoted were the best from the pool of candidates available.

"The persons that were promoted at this time were the ones I deemed most worthy to hold these roles," Oates said.

However, Oates' picks for commanders - former Aurora Police Chief Ricky Bennet, Lt. Rob McGregor and Capt. Richard -Cimms - drew a quick rebuke from Glenda Wells-Evans, president of Citizens Concerned About Minorities in Aurora.

Wells-Evans questioned the sincerity of Oates, who has long advocated having more minorities in all ranks of the department. Oates has clashed with the Civil Service Commission, saying he needs the authority to choose whom he promotes into upper ranks.

"I'm not at all pleased with his decision to do that. I think that he missed a great opportunity to be able to walk the talk," she said.

Unlike other promotions that are dictated by which officers score highest on a Civil Service test, Oates can pick whomever he wants from the ranks of lieutenant or captain to elevate to commander.

Out of the 37 officers holding those ranks, seven were minorities.

Aurora Councilman Ryan Frazier, who chairs the public safety and courts committee, said the lack of available minority candidates is part of the problem.

"On the surface, you have to say it looks like we missed an opportunity," he said. "But the reality is that you don't have a pool of diverse candidates to choose from."

Minorities in Aurora make up 25 percent of the population, but the police department is 86 percent white.

The three new commanders will head each of Aurora's three districts.

Last year, Oates appointed the first commander in Aurora's history, Roy Minter, a black police officer who started working as police chief in Denton, Texas, on Monday.

"The first thing I look at is, what pool of candidates did he have available," Minter said Wednesday, commenting on Oates' new picks. "I believe he made the best decision based on the pool of candidates."

Minter pointed out that during Oates' two-year tenure, he has promoted a woman to head the SWAT team, and a Hispanic to the level of captain.

"You also have to look at what the man has done in the past," Minter said.

37 senior officers in the Aurora Police Department are eligible for promotion to commander

Captains Lieutenants

• White male 4 25

• Black male 0 1

• Hispanic male 1 5

• White female 0 1

• Total 5 32Source: Aurora Police Department