Editor’s note: This story by John Lippman first appeared in the Valley News on Feb. 16.
HARTFORD — Creating a leadership vacuum at the top, Hartford Deputy Police Chief Brad Vail submitted his resignation Monday to take a job as Barre’s new police chief next month.
Vail, 52, notified Hartford Town Manager Tracy Yarlott-Davis last week that he was weighing an offer to become the police chief in Barre after serving on the Hartford force for 29 years.
Vail’s departure makes three top positions in the Hartford Police Department — police chief, deputy chief and captain — currently vacant. Vail had been filling in with the duties of a chief for more than a year. The town is just now beginning its search for a permanent police chief.
On Tuesday, Yarlott-Davis said the search for a new deputy chief also would begin shortly.
“Town residents and community leaders can be confident that we are committed to the strong foundation of service and community policing that Deputy Chief Vail personified,” Yarlott-Davis said in a news release Tuesday, adding the effort “will grow stronger as we now seek candidates for chief and deputy chief to continue that legacy.”
The search will involve “a careful, consistent process that will also provide for community input and reflection on the future of policing in Hartford,” she said.
As reported, Yarlott-Davis said she plans to bring together an advisory group of community members to provide input and feedback on hiring a new chief in addition to seeking the help of the International Association of Chiefs of Police in finding and vetting candidates.
Joe Major, vice chair of the Hartford Selectboard, called Vail’s service to Hartford “immeasurable.”
“We’ve been able to talk quite frankly about issues within the community. I could always depend upon him for an honest answer. He is a straight shooter with me, and I always appreciated that,” Major said.
In addition to the leadership positions, the currently 23-member Hartford Police department has five other open positions, Vail told the Valley News last week.
Steven Mackenzie, city manager of Barre, said Vail was selected from a pool of 11 applicants.
“The reason we went with Brad is because he had a longer experience profile,” Mackenzie said.
Mackenzie, advised by a 10-member group of community members, chose Vail over the Barre department’s deputy chief.
“And while there is no sense that the current department is being run wrongly, it doesn’t hurt to have someone new come to assess the department and see with cold eyes if things need to be refined or changed,” Mackenzie said.
Vail, who begins in Barre on March 7, did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
Read the story on VTDigger here: Hartford deputy police chief takes job in Barre leaving department with leadership vacuum.