Tisbury Police Chief Agrees to Accord on Retirement; Resigns Post
After 29 Years

By JOSHUA SABATINI

Tisbury chief of police John McCarthy reached an agreement with the
town board of selectmen on Monday, resigning from the force after almost
29 years of service.

"I think John served the town of Tisbury loyally and
faithfully and created strong ties between the police department and the
community," selectman Tristan Israel told the Gazette this week.
"Sometimes events transpire in the past that create a dynamic that
is seemingly unfair in the present. I wish things could have turned out
differently."

The agreement, under which the town will pay Mr. McCarthy $53,000 in
retroactive pay increases covering the last three years of his tenure,
is the culmination of a negotiation process that began nine months ago.

Last June, in executive session, the selectmen told the chief they
would not reappoint him when his three-year term terminates in June of
2002. Since last summer, the board has met in executive session four
times to discuss the issue. Before Christmas, the selectmen offered
Chief McCarthy a retirement package if he were to step down immediately.
The chief let the offer expire.

The selectmen have declined to comment either on their discussions
with the chief or on their reasons for asking the chief to resign a year
and a half before he is eligible for retirement at full pension.

In late February, Chief McCarthy's attorney contacted the town
to discuss a new offer. "Working with my attorney, we came to an
agreement with the town," Mr. McCarthy told the Gazette this week.

The Dukes County retirement board is responsible for approving
pensions for county employees. The board uses a formula based on two
factors: years of service and the average of the highest salaries for
three years. At full pension, an employee can receive 80 per cent of
full salary.

The new agreement was signed on Monday. The town agreed to pay Mr.
McCarthy $53,000 to raise the three-year salary average to a figure that
will place his pension near the earnings he would have made had he been
allowed to retire at full pension.

Half the amount in the agreement came from the town budget for the
chief's salary in this fiscal year, and half came from surplus
accrued in the budget for police department salaries because two officer
positions have been vacant this year.

On Monday, Mr. McCarthy and the selectmen signed a contract that
inserted a higher salary for all three years, as if he had worked until
June of this year. An average of $17,666 was added to each year.
Although Mr. McCarthy did not have a contract prior to Monday, the
effective date on the contract is July 1, 1999.

The agreement included the stipulation that Mr. McCarthy release all
claims past, present and future against the town.

The agreement allows Mr. McCarthy to return to his post at his
current salary, without the new increases, if "the amounts of such
salary are not included in the chief's retirement
calculations" by the retirement board.

In announcing his retirement, Mr. McCarthy said, "I am
thankful for the opportunity, which I have had, to serve the citizens of
Tisbury as both a police officer and an emergency medical technician.
Over my years of service to Tisbury I have worked with and served a
number of remarkable people, who will forever remain part of my memory
and whose friendship I will always cherish."

The board issued this statement Monday: "Tisbury is grateful
for Chief McCarthy's 28 years of loyal and distinguished service
to the town and Island community. John's professionalism,
leadership and commitment to law enforcement have been exemplary and he
will be missed. Chief McCarthy has devoted his entire professional
career to our town and few words can adequately convey the town's
appreciation for his service except a heartfelt, thank you."

At Tuesday's meeting of the selectmen, Lieut. Theodore
Saulnier, who was hired about six months ago, sat in the chair occupied
for years by Mr. McCarthy. The selectmen instructed Lieutenant Saulnier
to perform all the duties of a chief but explained that they do not
intend to name him formally as acting chief. Selectman Tom Pachico said
a decision on how to proceed in filling the vacant chief position will
not come for another three to six months.

Mr. Saulnier, who came to the force from Waltham, told the Gazette
this week that the officers appear to be taking the chief's
retirement "very well."

The lieutenant's post was a new one on the Tisbury force,
based on the recommendations of the Wasserman Report, a study of the
police department commissioned by the town and released early last year.
The report found that the department "is dysfunctional, at best,
with continual tension between police officers and management."

Another recommendation was to appoint a monitor for a year after the
report's release. The selectmen hired police consultant Brent
Larrabee as monitor; his employment ended with his last progress report,
dated Nov. 12, 2001.

A Sept. 12 report from Mr. Larrabee to town administrator Dennis
Luttrell declared: "To achieve any substantive change or progress
in the Tisbury police department, Chief McCarthy either has to change
his management style/approach or his philosophy." Further on, the
report stated: "At this point I am not sure John McCarthy is able
to change his philosophy or approach, a view held by many of his
subordinates."

Mr. Larrabee wrote personal comments about Mr. McCarthy. "I
believe John would welcome a buy-out under the right conditions. He does
not want to simply walk away unless the conditions are right. He feels a
bit battle worn."

Mr. Larrabee's final progress report, issued in November,
included positive remarks about the department but expressed concern
about the chief's position. "The only major issue that
remains unresolved from the Wasserman report is the question of the
chief of police," the report reads. "I believe the town must
resolve this matter now, so the community and police department can
begin to formulate a long-range approach to policing in Tisbury.
Everyone knows the options available to the town. The town must act soon
to provide the necessary direction for the leadership of the [police
department]."

The Wasserman report, the document the selectmen have voted to
follow strictly and have often cited in their public discussion of the
department, states: "Simply firing the chief of police will not
solve the situation." But the report also states, "The town
must seriously consider the chief's tenure if the recommendations
contained in this report are not fully implemented, and if
management's dealing with members of the department does not
become more sophisticated and supportive."

Mr. McCarthy declined to comment this week on Mr. Larrabee's
progress reports. On behalf of the selectmen, Mr. Israel struck a
similar tone. "It is time now for the town and the police
department," he said, "to move into a new chapter."