BREAKING NEWS: New police chief tapped for Southwest Harbor
SOUTHWEST HARBOR, June 23, 2021 - Acting Town Manager announced tonight he has named a new police chief to replace Alan Brown who collapsed and died last October at Age 51.
“I am pleased to announce that, subject to confirmation by the Select Board, I have appointed Sgt. John D. Hall of the Winthrop Police Department as the next Chief of the Southwest Harbor Police Department,” Dana Reed said in his email.
“Chief Hall brings us over 30 years of law enforcement experience, extensive investigative experience, and a commitment to community service, having worked for eight years as the DARE instructor and School Resource Officer for the Winslow School Department. His first day of work for Southwest Harbor will be July 12.”
Reed passed over Acting Chief Michael W. Miller, who has been overseeing an under-staffed police department since Brown’s death. Presumably Hall’s appointment will remove one opening for a police officer, assuming Miller stays on.
Winthrop is a town 15 minutes west of Augusta with about twice the population of Southwest Harbor and twice the number of police (9).
The town still has several other openings to plug, including Reed’s own job as town manager and a harbormaster.
In his last year, Alan Brown was working toward a plan to consolidate SWH police with Mount Desert and Bar Harbor, which share police services. That plan was snuffed out by Chad Terry, then vice chair of the select board.