Palm Beach County inspector general search narrowed to 4
By Sephora Charles | Stet News
February 10, 2026 at 10:00 AM EST
A seven-person Palm Beach County panel selected four finalists to be the next county inspector general, including the office’s top deputy and three candidates with federal experience.
The selection panel, featuring State Attorney Alexcia Cox and Public Defender Daniel Eisinger, met on Feb. 5 to review applications to replace John Carey, who is leaving in June to pursue a career in the ministry.
The job posting, offering a starting salary of $260,000 to $280,000, drew 13 applicants, 12 of them deemed qualified, before closing on Jan. 30.
The four finalists are: Kalinthia Dillard, the county’s deputy inspector general; Matthew Dove, from the U.S. Department of Energy; Jim Kirdar, from the U.S. Capitol Police; and Anthony Zakel, formerly with the U.S. International Development Finance Corp.
The selection committee for Palm Beach County inspector general on Feb. 5. (1190x582, AR: 2.0446735395189)
READ MORE: Task force narrows field for Palm Beach County's top boss to six candidates
Aiming to be ‘bulletproof’
The inspector general’s office is an independent organization responsible for oversight of the county’s 39 municipalities, the Solid Waste Authority and the Children’s Services Council. The office, created in 2009, conducts audits and investigations throughout the county to prevent fraud, waste and mismanagement.
Aside from Cox and Eisinger, the committee is made up of local representatives of three bar associations, the Association of Chiefs of Police, the League of Cities, Florida Atlantic University and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
The panel focused on candidates with inspector general certifications.
“I want whoever the next inspector general is to be bulletproof,” committee member Rodney Romano said.
The committee will meet on March 5 to interview the finalists in a public round-robin format.
Candidate one will get the first question and each candidate will answer. Candidate two will get the second question and each candidate will answer. The process follows until all candidates have answered all the questions.
The method was used for the selection last year of the county administrator and county attorney.
Zoom in on the final four
Kalinthia Dillard has been Palm Beach County’s general counsel and deputy inspector general for the past decade. Before working in the inspector general’s office, Dillard was an attorney for multiple agencies, including the Palm Beach County School District. She is a certified inspector general, certified inspector general investigator and certified inspector general auditor.
Matthew Dove is the assistant inspector general for audits for the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington. He has more than 10 years of experience in roles for the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. Dove also holds three certifications: certified inspector general, certified inspector general auditor and certified fraud examiner.
Jim Kirdar has been the assistant inspector general for investigations for the U.S. Capitol Police for the past year. He is a certified inspector general investigator and has worked in law enforcement agencies such as the U.S. Department of Justice and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service for more than 20 years.
Anthony Zakel served as the inspector general for the U.S. International Development Finance Corp. until October. His experience includes working in the inspector general’s office for the U.S. Department of Transportation. He holds an inspector general certification.
This story was originally published by Stet News Palm Beach, a WLRN News partner.
The selection panel, featuring State Attorney Alexcia Cox and Public Defender Daniel Eisinger, met on Feb. 5 to review applications to replace John Carey, who is leaving in June to pursue a career in the ministry.
The job posting, offering a starting salary of $260,000 to $280,000, drew 13 applicants, 12 of them deemed qualified, before closing on Jan. 30.
The four finalists are: Kalinthia Dillard, the county’s deputy inspector general; Matthew Dove, from the U.S. Department of Energy; Jim Kirdar, from the U.S. Capitol Police; and Anthony Zakel, formerly with the U.S. International Development Finance Corp.
The selection committee for Palm Beach County inspector general on Feb. 5. (1190x582, AR: 2.0446735395189)
READ MORE: Task force narrows field for Palm Beach County's top boss to six candidates
Aiming to be ‘bulletproof’
The inspector general’s office is an independent organization responsible for oversight of the county’s 39 municipalities, the Solid Waste Authority and the Children’s Services Council. The office, created in 2009, conducts audits and investigations throughout the county to prevent fraud, waste and mismanagement.
Aside from Cox and Eisinger, the committee is made up of local representatives of three bar associations, the Association of Chiefs of Police, the League of Cities, Florida Atlantic University and the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners.
The panel focused on candidates with inspector general certifications.
“I want whoever the next inspector general is to be bulletproof,” committee member Rodney Romano said.
The committee will meet on March 5 to interview the finalists in a public round-robin format.
Candidate one will get the first question and each candidate will answer. Candidate two will get the second question and each candidate will answer. The process follows until all candidates have answered all the questions.
The method was used for the selection last year of the county administrator and county attorney.
Zoom in on the final four
Kalinthia Dillard has been Palm Beach County’s general counsel and deputy inspector general for the past decade. Before working in the inspector general’s office, Dillard was an attorney for multiple agencies, including the Palm Beach County School District. She is a certified inspector general, certified inspector general investigator and certified inspector general auditor.
Matthew Dove is the assistant inspector general for audits for the U.S. Department of Energy in Washington. He has more than 10 years of experience in roles for the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction. Dove also holds three certifications: certified inspector general, certified inspector general auditor and certified fraud examiner.
Jim Kirdar has been the assistant inspector general for investigations for the U.S. Capitol Police for the past year. He is a certified inspector general investigator and has worked in law enforcement agencies such as the U.S. Department of Justice and the Naval Criminal Investigative Service for more than 20 years.
Anthony Zakel served as the inspector general for the U.S. International Development Finance Corp. until October. His experience includes working in the inspector general’s office for the U.S. Department of Transportation. He holds an inspector general certification.
This story was originally published by Stet News Palm Beach, a WLRN News partner.