Selectmen Appoint Veteran Patrolman to Be Acting Chief

By MAX HART

The Tisbury police department remained in the spotlight this week,
as selectmen appointed one of the town's veteran officers to serve
as temporary chief of police after outgoing chief Theodore (Ted)
Saulnier announced he would step down three weeks earlier than
anticipated.

Timothy Stobie, a patrolman who has served on the department for 17
years, was named acting police chief during the selectmen's
meeting on Tuesday night, five days after Mr. Saulnier unexpectedly
announced that his last day at work would be today, June 9.

Mr. Stobie will assume police chief duties beginning tomorrow, and
will serve until selectmen complete their search for a full-time police
chief.

Mr. Stobie's appointment is the latest move in the
board's ongoing efforts to bring stability to the top levels of
the department, which has been in flux for the past year. Selectmen
decided last year not to renew Mr. Saulnier's three-year contract
after the two parties were unable to reach agreement on the
chief's financial compensation. Although the contract expired June
30, 2005, it contained a provision that Mr. Saulnier could remain in his
post for up to one year after that date.

Mr. Saulnier had never told the selectmen when he planned to leave,
though he also offered no prior indication that it would be before June
30 of this year. Consequently, selectmen appointed a search committee
this spring with the goal of hiring someone at the start of the summer.
The selectmen also explored an unusual proposal to share the services of
Oak Bluffs police chief Erik Blake, but the idea was set aside last week
after Mr. Blake withdrew his name from consideration. Along with
concerns about the timing of such an arrangement, patrolmen from both
departments expressed displeasure with the plan.

Now refocused on the search committee's findings, selectmen
have yet to settle on a final list of candidates - though they
expect to begin interviews soon. Selectmen have estimated hiring a new
chief by mid-July.

On Tuesday, board chairman Tristan Israel said that after receiving
Mr. Saulnier's notice the selectmen turned to consultant Robert
Wasserman of Strategic Policy Partnership - a consulting firm that
helps police and government agencies with performance and policy issues
- for ideas on temporary replacements. Mr. Wasserman, who has
advised the town on police matters in the past, suggested that the
selectmen appoint an acting police chief from within the department. He
also recommended that the temporary chief be neither a sergeant nor
anyone who had applied for the position.

Selectman Thomas Pachico suggested appointing Mr. Stobie over
another veteran patrolman, Mark Santon. Mr. Santon is a detective and is
currently in charge of court duties, and Mr. Pachico worried that being
acting chief would be too much work. Both Mr. Santon and Mr. Stobie
attended the meeting.

After a brief discussion, the board voted unanimously in favor of
Mr. Stobie, adding that they were sensitive to disrupting the atmosphere
inside the department.

"We know that it is an awkward situation going from patrolman
to chief, then back to patrolman," Mr. Pachico said.

The board also assured Mr. Stobie that the temporary move will be
reflected in his compensation. Mr. Stobie will receive a raise in
accordance with the change from a unionized patrolman to the non-union
management position.