The Select Board voted unanimously to appoint Providence Police Captain Timothy Lee as the new Dartmouth Police Chief contingent upon successfully reaching agreement on contract terms and a background check.
Congratulations to Captain Lee. I look forward to working with you.
I believe that the two candidates that we interviewed are exemplary law enforcement officers. My preference between the two is Captain Lee from Providence, although I am convinced that Chief Miller would also do a great job. The local knowledge and relationships that Captain Lee already has with police departments in the area was the determining factor in my choice.
Monday, February 8, 2010
Select Board chooses Captain Lee
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31 comments:
Good choice William,
I don't often agree with your politics but in this situation given the 2 candidates I do agree with you.
Hopefully Dartmouth's experience with an outside Chief will go better than New Bedford's and Westports to name a few.
I always thought Michael Watson liked hearing the sound of his voice. (He has this habit of always adjusting his mike, lest we miss one word.) After watching the meeting tonight, I am sure of it. First one to comment, last one to comment when nothing more needed to be said and it was unanimous that all five Board members chose Capt. Lee.
Was there really any reason for him to repeatedly (what, three, four, five times?) state that the second candidate was not the best candidate for chief in Dartmouth and to repeatedly inform the public that he personally opposes the second candidate? That had to be readily apparent already. We in Dartmouth do not need to be educated, Mr. Watson, although I'm sure it's your teaching background that is kicking in. We are not ignorant. We fully understand that when five out of five Board members agree on Captain Lee, it obviously means five out of five Board members did not agree on the second candidate as being the better of the two.
And, forgive me here, but I was appalled at Mr. Watson's continuous discrediting the second candidate. It was embarrassing to listen to him. Hearing him once was enough (and, frankly, it was not even necessary to hear him once.)
How crass and tactless.
Oh, and stop pandering to the press, Mr. Watson. Who besides Mr. Barboza and Mr. Brown are you trying to impress when you look in the direction of where the press sits? Subtlety is clearly not your forte.
Congratulations to the new chief. If he is the man he appeared to be in his interview we should all enjoy working for him.
Let's not get into criticizing Watson's mannerisms. That's just petty. What bothers me was the obvious attempt to leave the door open for local politics to be meddling in the appointment process. The reason he kept saying that he wouldn't support the second candidate was strategical. He knew Lee would get appointed so he cut his losses there. However, by persistently discrediting the second candidate, the option to appoint a Kenny Vincent puppet remained possible if contract negotiations fell through with Lee. Sometimes people talk too much so that others will focus their criticizms on foolish things like mannerisms instead of the shady political maneuvers they are trying to pull. Sorry Watson, we're on to you.
I clearly understand what Mr. Watson was trying to do, and it wasn't the first time he has done so (Remember the finalists' interviews for EA? He wanted to obliterate one of the three who appeared before the SB that day, too.)
Sorry if I am petty. I guess yesterday and his classless performance of naming the second candidate over and over just got to me. Then, his repetitive statement that he did not support the second candidate as possible chief was totally unnecessary. The vote was unanimous, so just what was his purpose, having the last word, maybe? Just a lot of show for the crowd, I guess. Speak loudly and a lot, repeat, repeat, and say nothing.
Re: Mr. Watson
A lot of the voters made a huge mistake last fall with him. Got the wool pulled over their eyes by several special interest groups. Clearly, he wanted an inside candidate because of who supports him. Unfortunately, that mistake will haunt us for quite some time. Nothing good added. Overrides are on the way!
So, we are well forewarned of the future and its impact on our wallets. While we still have the time, we can prepare ourselves for what will come, and be ready to take every opportunity to voice our opposition to an override.
That also includes who we elect to both the School Committee and the Select Board. You can almost bet your last penny (and it will be your last penny) that an override is not out of consideration for the School Committee to ask for.
We already know how one candidate for School Committee feels. Doug Roscoe, along with our Selectwoman Ms. Stone and others, worked tirelessly in their effort to put forth an $8.5 million override back a few years ago and I would imagine they favored the smaller overrides asked for (and not received, thankfully) by the School Committee, following their original defeat.
Can we put two and two together? It all adds up to override time. Would it be a surprise to anyone if that were their agenda and mission to push through once on a board/committee?
We can start by making a difference in April when we vote. Choose your candidate carefully while we still have the power. We control the outcome of who sits or does not sit on our boards and committees. That goes for both the School Committee and Select Board posts.
A very important warning to all Dartmouth voters. Never vote /elect a former town employee to the select board.
Example: Kenny Vincent while working for the police department ran for selectman and got elected This is the first time that a full time police officer/patrolman became a police commissioner and out ranked the police chief. During working hours the chief/ captain, sergeants out ranked selectman(Vincent) but during his off time, selectman Kenny Vincent out ranked the chief. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE??
Kenny Vincent never voted on police related issues and for this he must be commended, but don't you agree that Kenny Vincent must have had some influence with his board members??
Don't we all remember the special contracts for certain town employee's.
Please.....Never vote for another town employee or former town employee.
Bahhh! You guys are the only ones talking about overrides. Nothing like stirring the pot when by all accounts things are going well.
I think question 1 of all candidates for the SB and SC should be "are you in favor overrides in the next 2 years"?
Well, thank goodness someone has the presence of mind to talk about overrides and someone has the presence of mind to listen and agree. Because if we all rest under the misguided belief that, "by all accounts things are going well," we will be hit on the side of the head when a prominent (or not so prominent) proponent of the override runs for Select Board and others besides Mr. Roscoe, major override supporter, (Mr. Nunes, too; I don't know, but I would think quite likely) run for School Committee, thus assuring at least one override supporter's winning a School Committee seat.
How do the candidates who are running for Mrs. Dias' seat on the Select Board feel about overrides? We need to ask some hard questions of any and all candidates running for office this April.
If "by all accounts things are going well," it may just be that for the past 2-3 years the Dartmouth residents have been paying more attention to how our town is being run and where our money goes. And, thankfully, a LOT of that came out with the revealation of the eight contracts-for-life, instigated by a town employee and approved by other town employees, both paid and elected.
The pot better get stirred or we all will be in deep you-know-what.
We could very well be halfway there already, when you consider our currently seated SB members.
And, if indeed, the good ol' boys network is rearing its ugly head as has been mentioned several times on this blog, we really have to be on our toes.
The last thing we need are officials mucking the governing of our town as it has been done in the past. The good ol' boys are slowly being eliminated in town government. Hopefully the residents realizing the negative effect they have had on Dartmouth for many years will continue to vote in new blood and continue expunging the old. New blood, however, should not come with an override or any other agenda that will heavily influence his or her votes.
we need a chuckle emoticon on here.
I'm laughing because you immediately put words in my mouth that I did not say. I simply said you are pot stirrers and that things are in fact going pretty well. I said nothing about not paying attention as should every good citizen. No one is talking about overrides rather ost are working very hard to see the town through some very difficult times. That in fact is a good thing and I am happy to support it.
The town has previously been run from places like a farm, a union hall, and a bar room. Let's keep it run by the taxpayers, not the special interest groups. Know your candidate and vote accordingly. If you do that, then we will continue our recent history of getting representation for all the taxpayers.
Perhaps the word "misguided" was the wrong choice. At any rate, you are right: the town is doing pretty well, now that there has been a change in those running our government.
I perhaps should have used the word "complacent" instead. We shouldn't become complacent because things in town, for once, are going in a far more positive direction than has previously been the case when a certain few ran the town. Looks like their influence may be waning. But, with new blood even, you've got to be careful not to get someone into office that is as bad as or worse than those no longer in office or in charge of the town.
I bring up overrides and the possibility that board/committee hopefuls who get elected may just have some agenda, whether we know it or not. Certainly we knew Ms. Stone's fondness of and her tireless work for overrides for the town before we elected her. It's just a matter of time, I would think because as she said before her election, the time for one (then) was not right. Let's scrutinize our representatives carefully and decide whether or not we can live under their rule and with their philosophies.
I f you reread my post, I don't believe I put any words in your mouth. Correct me, please, if I am wrong.
it is funny how unions are special interest to the conservatives on this blog...but fail to see,,,that they are essentially fighting middle class workers. ...This has been the cause of conservatives for 30 years now.
Complain all you want about the lack of funds at the town level...but that is a direct coorelation to the lack of leadership and BAD policies in DC.
The less money BIG corporations pay in federal money(which as we all know is not much..unless you have your head where the sun doesn't shine) the less money states have in federal aid which trickles down to the local level.
Unions are for profit organizations that have long deceived their memberships and the public. There are no "Norma Rae" causes going on here. The classic case here in Dartmouth involves a former police officer that the town terminated several times. How did that work out? Right, he is collecting a pension thanks to the police union. Good job union!
They are not for profit. I would join a union if my company didn't give me a good living wage.
The problem here on this blog, is you have some major Dartmouth conservatives that rail against unions and pensions...all while sucking at the teet of the taxpayers....UMASS Dartmouth employees, those who go work for the State being repairmen or even worse, attack the national healthplan all the while accepting VA benefits
I don't have a problem with these Dartmouth individuals doing these jobs or accepting these services what I do have a problem with is that they are hypocrits.
Should have promoted from within, that is how the private sector works. The employees know the business the best and are best suited for the job.
Look at how many CEOs on wall street ruin companies...none of them rose through the ranks...they were all bought and brought in form other areas
Lee will give the Police Dept. a breath of fresh air. With his experience, he can mentor some of the younger officers who would like to follow in his footsteps when he leaves. If Dartmouth police wanted this job to stay inside Dartmouth, they should have been doing their homework to prepare for it.
The Police Chief Search Committee has released the names of three finalists vying for the police chief job, and none are from the Stoughton Police Department.
In addition, one has been offered the job of police chief job in Dartmouth, and another is contention for another police chief job.
http://www.wickedlocal.com/stoughton/news/x1631826073/Stoughton-officials-reveal-police-chief-finalists
The three finalists are: Capt. Timothy Lee of the Providence Police Department, Capt. Renald Marchand of the Cheshire Police Department in Connecticut, and Lt. Paul Shastany, who is the commander of the Bureau and Administrative Services for the Framingham Police Department.
Lee, who is the director of his police department’s training division, said he is in contract negotiations for the police chief job in Dartmouth. He said he informed the police chief search committee at the beginning of his candidacy that he also was applying for that job.
If We aren't Lee's first choice, why should he be ours? Seriously... If Lee would rather be in Stoughton why should we be there to pick up the pieces if he falls short.
I noticed Lee never removed his name from contention, which would indicate he would rather be there then here.
Explain this Bill, if you can!!!
This is the very reason an outside Chief should be head and shoulders above an in house Chief. An in house Chief has served this community for 20 or more years before assuming the top spot, he/she has ties to the community and family and friends in the neighborhoods. If both candidates are close at all PREFERENCE should be with the candidate that has served OUR town with pride and honor.
This was Thursday's paper people. Let's demand accountability at the town hall. This is an outrage.
Lee, 43, a 21-year veteran of the Providence police force, said he cannot be sure where he will go.
http://www.topix.com/forum/city/brockton-ma/T9HIGBA9E3M408E10
Just as we will benefit from having Mr. Cressman from outside Dartmouth coming in as our new executive administrator, so we will benefit from having Capt. Lee, should he accept our contract, as our new chief. We now need an individual from the outside to be our new director of budget and finance/treasurer, and we will be well on our way to a healthier Dartmouth.
Healthier how? Dartmouth is one of the best run communities in the commonwealth and has been for quite some time.
If I read correctly, the selectmens choice for police chief, catain Lee, may be interested in a chiefs position in some other town. It's my understanding that Capt. Lee accepted the towns offer for employment pending conditions concerning salary.
I'll just pee my pants if he decides to go elsewhere......
Getting completely away from the good old boy network, even from outside the government.
Maybe someone can answer my concern. If this Lee guy decides to go to Stoughton, where will the selectman go to find a police chief for Dartmouth?? The last two candidates, one from Texas is as unqualified as a three dollar bill. How could Dartmouth spend so much money on a nation wide search and come up with a dumbo like the texan?? Dartmouth is spending money on some study group to come up with qualified candidates.
No, I'm not a police officer or a town worker, I'm a tax payer. I do know Gary Soaes. Gary is a stand up guy who can run the department but for some unknown reason didn't make the search groups needs but some unknow ass from Texas becomes a finalist. What in hell is wrong with this picture.
Lee will take the job. Although I wouldn't doubt if Kenny and his puppet Watson are doing everything in their power to scare him away.
11:49 is correct. Just refer to 9:51am for proof.
Joe Michaud...spending TENS OF THOUSANDS LOOKING...for an EA and TENS OF THOUSANDS for a police chief...fiscal conservative?....maybe with his own money.....he is following in the footsteps of hodges the
spend-aholic.
Not to mention the BIG TIME LAWSUIT he helped with against the town.
I personally am not a fan of anyone who is "waiting" to see how another job offer turns out.
Either you WANT to be the the chief in Dartmouth more than anything or you don't.
If you want to move here and accept it, if not good luck in Providence or Stoughton.
Do not hedge your bets by keeping us in the running. I prefer a chief who thinks Dartmouth Police Chief is his dream job.
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