Barnstable County Sheriff Hires New General Counsel

HYANNIS, MA — The Barnstable County Sheriff's Office has officially hired a new general counsel with two decades of experience working with law enforcement agencies.

Michael Halpin, an attorney for the Massachusetts State Police for the past 20 years, has been hired as general counsel of the Barnstable County Sheriff's Office.

Aside from two short stints at private law firms, Halpin spent his career representing government agencies and employees, officials said.

Halpin was hired by the Massachusetts State Police in 2002, working his way up to become the special counsel to the colonel in 2019. Before that, he served as the department’s chief legal counsel for eight years.

Halpin also served as the department’s labor counsel and has worked as special assistant to the attorney general since 2004.

He has litigated cases in district and superior courts and before the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination, the Ethics Commission and a variety of arbitrators, boards, and other tribunals, officials said.

Halpin was also responsible for helping draft legislation, rules, regulations and policies for the state police.

Sheriff Donna Buckley spent most of her career as an attorney and served as general counsel for the sheriff’s office before being elected sheriff in 2022, giving her a unique perspective when hiring a general counsel.

“Mike has a wealth of experience and understands all aspects of public sector and public safety law,” said Buckley. “He has great people skills, and we are honored that he’s willing to share his expertise with the Barnstable County Sheriff’s Office.”

Halpin is married with four children. He is a graduate of Westfield State University and received his Juris Doctor from St. John’s University in New York City in 1995.

“I am happy to be here and am looking forward to helping the Sheriff’s Office in any way that I can,” said Halpin.