Panel to select candidates for chief’s post

EAST HAMPTON — A committee has been established to review the applications of candidates interested in becoming the town’s new police chief.

The Town Council this week approved the creation of a search committee and voted to approve the appointment of seven members. It is tasked with finding a full-time successor for Chief Sean D. Cox, who resigned late last month to take a private job in the defense industry.

Former Groton City Police Chief Thomas Davoren has agreed to serve as director of police services/interim chief.

The panel is made up of town councilors James “Pete” Brown and Mark Philhower, and residents Bill McCann and Tom O’Brien.

Town Manager Michael Maniscalco, who will be an ex-officio member, invited Tom Ingala, pastor of the Hope Church, to join the committee. “He’s a local pastor who is very active in the community, and, as such, he can provide community insights,” Maniscalco explained during a conversation in his Town Hall office earlier this week.

He also added Lisa Seymour, director of human resources, to the search committee, both for her background and expertise in human resources and to provide some gender balance to the selection process, he said.

Maniscalco said he has between 12 and 14 applications from prospective candidates for the position.

The vacancy was posted with the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association, the Connecticut Council of Municipalities and the International Country Manager’s Association.

The application deadline is Jan. 19. Resumes and other information should be submitted to the “Police Chief Search” in care of the manager’s Town Hall office. Those who have questions about the process are asked to contact Seymour at 860-2674468.

The search committee will review the initial applications and then reduce the number to between eight and 10 semifinalists. The committee will conduct interviews with the semifinalists “and score them based on a system we have developed,” Maniscalco said.

The panel will forward the finalists’ names to Maniscalco who, in the company of an internal committee made up of department heads, will conduct interviews. The manager will then make a decision on who will be the new chief.

Having reviewed the initial batch of applicants, Maniscalco said, “I think we have some very qualified candidates in the mix.”

Under a timeline he developed, Maniscalco said he hopes to make “a conditional offer of employment” to the winning candidate sometime during the week of Feb. 15.

Two weeks have been allotted for a background investigation of the finalist and a pre-employment physical. Maniscalco said he hopes to have the new chief in place by April 1.

While no currently serving officers have yet submitted their applications, Maniscalco said, “There is nothing to prevent an inhouse applicant from applying.”

Davoren has said he is not interested in applying for the position.

Maniscalco said the salary of the new chief will be based on the applicant’s experience.