Recently retired police Chief Joe Mokwa left late last month with some unfriendly headlines hanging over his head.

His replacement could get revenge — on the copy editors at least.

Among the baker’s dozen of candidates that have stepped forward to replace Mokwa is a name sure to make the page designers queasy: Lt. Col. Roy J. Joachimstaler.

Pronounced Ja-Come-Staller, the handle has more characters than other polysyllabic surnames common in the Post-Dispatch (Blagojevich, Isringhausen.)

The veteran officer is among the inside candidates for the top spot, if for no other reason that he is one of three deputy chiefs — the second-highest rank in the department — up for the position. (The other two are Reggie Harris and Stephen Pollihan, who is currently the interim chief.)

For brevity’s sake, here’s hoping the job application has a line for nicknames.