To the Editor:
Regarding the [Damariscotta] police chief having been placed on administrative leave (paid vacation) for very unprofessional conduct, it should have occurred two years ago when he threatened Buzz Pinkham with arrest when the cause of the problem was the police chief.
If the police chief is such a wonderful investigator for the District Attorney’s office regarding child abuse, why was his investigation thrown out of court over the recent mess at Great Salt Bay School?
Two years ago the chief told the board of selectmen that if he could have one new man he would be able to put an officer on the street. He got the new man but there is still nobody on the street. In fact, I believe he has hired two new officers since that meeting.
We need a police chief who does not feel it beneath him to be seen on the street in a uniform occasionally. In fact, an officer on the street every day for at least half a day would be good public relations.
We do not need a police budget of over half a million dollars.
The chief states that we cannot rely on the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office for timely response. That is hogwash. Every single day of the week there are one to four Lincoln County Sheriff’s cars in town or very near.
There is one at Lincoln Academy every school day for the entire day. Our local police chief should be required to be a resident of the town he works for. Maybe he wouldn’t be quite as reckless with tax dollars if some of it were his own.
Jim Campbell, Upset taxpaying resident of Damariscotta
