Braintree Police Chief Candidate Moves On To Town Council

BRAINTREE, MA — The Town Council's Ways and Means Committee voted unanimously to push Mayor Joseph Sullivan's choice for police chief to the full council for confirmation. Unless a two-third majority rejects the mayor's appoint, Maynard Police Chief Mark Dubois will be the next leader of the Braintree Police Department.

Dubois served at the head of the Maynard Police Department for more than seven years while leading a staff of 35 officers. Prior to that, Dubois worked in the Shrewsbury Police Department as a patrol officer, patrol sergeant and lieutenant-operations division commander. He's also a major in the U.S. Army Reserve.

The appointment of Dubois was questioned by several police officers, residents, and candidates for town office, who believe in-house candidates should have been given greater consideration. Others, including Lawrence Mackin Jr., a candidate for the District 6 Town Council seat, argued the new mayor should be the one to name the next police chief.

"Many of the residents I've spoken to said the decision should not be made by the outgoing mayor ...," Mackin said. "Our new mayor should have a voice in the decision."

Mackin argued an interim police chief should be named and wanted the vote to be tabled until after the election or at least have the Town Council vote on Sullivan's reccomendation before Tuesday's election so residents know where the councilors stand.

Town Solicitor Nicole Taub said Sullivan needs to be the one to appoint the next mayor to maintain the department's continuity. She said there cannot be a "lapse in leadership."

Taub and Chelsea Police Chief Brian Kyes, who were both part of the screening committee, described the hiring process to the Ways and Means Committee. Taub said 28 applicants applied for the job, and the committee reviewed resumes and narrowed the field down to 10 for interviews.

The screening committee interviewed the 10 applicants and chose three for Sullivan to interview. One of the finalists withdrew from the process, and Sullivan ended up interviewing two finalists.
"I found this to be a very professional process ...," Kyes said. "Overall ,I thought this process was very fair and certainly very thorough."

District 4 Councilor Stephen O'Brien agreed, saying he was happy Braintree police officers were considered for the position. He admitted he came to the meeting to find something wrong with the process, but said he believes everything was done correctly.

“I came into this looking for an excuse. I can’t find one. I refuse to look anymore," O'Brien said.

Former Town Councilor Paul Clifford said the public wants to know how each of the councilors will vote on this issue before the election. He said the council should schedule a special meeting before Tuesday's election.

Town Council meetings are scheduled two years in advance and can only be changed by the council president, District 3 Councilor Thomas Bowes said. O’Brien said he has a room reserved for a possible Monday night meeting.