Town’s cops resign – all four of them
Interim chief, 3 officers cite ‘unsafe’ working conditions
BLANDFORD — This Western Massachusetts town of 1,200 has suddenly found itself without a police department after its interim chief and all three of its officers abruptly resigned.
Interim Chief Roberta Sarnacki informed Selectboard Chairwoman Cara Letendre via email midway through Monday’s board meeting after announcing the resignations to local media, Lentendre said.
“It came as a surprise to us,” the chairwoman said. “We’re all disappointed, to say the least.”
State police, who handled many of the part-time department’s calls before the resignations, have since stepped up coverage of the town, together with local sheriff’s deputies, until the town can hire replacements.
Sarnacki and former officers Chris Anciello, Gage Terlik and Krysten Scapin could not be reached for comment yesterday.
But in a joint press release Monday, the four said they had been dealing with “unsafe” working conditions, including inadequate staffing, ill-fitting or expired bulletproof vests and radios that didn’t work in most parts of town, “for some time.”
The officers said they also made only $14 and $15 an hour, and their best car was a 2010 Crown Victoria that overheated at times, had no air conditioning and a seat that was stuck in the reclined position.
“We are extremely embarrassed,” they said in their press release.
Letendre said the resignations appeared to be led by Sarnacki, who was hired for a 30-day period that ended Monday and who disagreed with the board’s decision to post her job, even though members urged her to reapply.
Sarnacki also made clear that she disagreed with sharing police services with other towns, one of the options the board is considering for the department, which currently has annual budget of $47,000, Letendre said.
“The idea is if we can share services and create more fulltime positions, you’re more likely to keep someone longer, and you’re more likely to find someone more qualified,” she said. “But (Sarnacki) made pretty clear she didn’t think regionalization was a good idea, even though we’re only at the very early stages of collecting data. And even if we do regionalize, you’re talking two or three years out just for the police department.”
In a meeting with the Selectboard on Monday, regionalization and the reasons for posting Sarnacki’s position were the only issues the police department raised, Letendre said.
As for the others raised in the officers’ press release, she said, dead zones interfere with radio communications, an unfortunate reality of life in a hilly area, but one that should be mitigated when broadband comes to the town in the next couple years.
Repairs have been completed on the police car the officers mentioned, Letendre said. And if that bulletproof vests didn’t fit, she said, “that’s the first I’ve heard about it.”
Stephen Hart, a lifelong Blandford resident, said he supported the officers who resigned.
“You need a police department in town,” Hart, a heavy equipment operator, said outside the Blandford Country Store.
“I think it’s horrible that the selectmen didn’t try to help out more.”