BF to hire new interim police chief, begin new search

By PAUL H. HEINTZ, Reformer Staff
Brattleboro Reformer

Saturday, September 29
BELLOWS FALLS -- The Village Trustees authorized interim Municipal Manager John Schempf to hire a new interim police chief and to begin another search for a permanent chief Friday night.

The trustees held a special meeting the day after Russ "Rusty" O'Dell -- a retired Cornwall, N.Y., police chief who had previously agreed to take the position -- said he was no longer interested.

O'Dell, who visited the village last weekend to look for housing, informed Schempf of his change of heart Thursday morning via fax.

"He didn't think the department was sustainable and he was also concerned about the porousness of the department," Schempf explained Friday night.

"Obviously he didn't study the picture as well as he could have before he accepted," said Village President Clark Barber.

"I was disappointed. I had high hopes for him," said trustee Gary DeRosia.

Interim Police Chief John Dunfee, who resigned the position earlier this month after filling it since January, completed his last day of work Friday. Officer David Bemis will head the department until a new interim chief is picked.

"We'll have an interim hopefully by the end of the week," Schempf said.

Rather than reuse applications from the search that ended with O'Dell, the trustees said they would launch a new search because they felt the resumes they had were likely outdated.

"We're going to work as fast as we can to get it done," Schempf said.

The police department is the subject of two State Police investigations -- one of which has been turned over to the Attorney General's office -- and was recently banned from using the state law enforcement computer system. The department has lacked permanent leadership since former chief Keith Clark stepped down in order to run for Windham County Sheriff.

DeRosia said he believed the department's problems would not dissuade strong applicants and could potentially even draw better ones who might be looking for a challenge.

"I don't think it's going to affect the quality of the candidates that apply," he said. "Hopefully it has the reverse affect."

Paul Heintz can be reached at pheintz@reformer.com or 802-254-2311, ext. 275.