HANSON – Police Chief Michael Miksch said salary issues have already motivated one police officer to leave the department, acknowledging to the Select Board on Tuesday, July 9 that the main reason was money.
Despite the sobering personnel news, Miksch saw reason for optimism in how the department handles persistent issues of addiction and mental health needs of residents.
“It is what it is,” Miksch said of the salary motivation behind departures, adding that the department’s shared clinician, who often accompanied officers on non-violent calls involving mental health issues, also departed for the greener pastures of higher salaries city departments could offer.
“Obviously, the budget is a challenge, every year maintenance on the building is difficult,” he said. But despite two of the HVAC systems going down on the first day to go over 90 degrees, there were funds in the fiscal 2024 budget to fix it.
“Eric, don’t panic, I’ve got some money to turn back to you,” he said to Town Accountant Eric Kinsherf.
While the grant which four towns used to fund the clinician they all shared, Miksch said his department would not be able to replace the officer who recently left.
“It’s very difficult,” he said. “I can’t fill that position, at least until January.” The departure also left a supervisory position [that of a sergeant], vacant.”
During the next two weeks, he plans to hire a consulting company to come in and give a written exam, based on policies and procedures, Massachusetts case law and criminal law, followed by an assessment center for those passing the exam, which puts them through real-life scenarios geared toward assessing their skill. Within three or four months, the process should yield a new supervisor, which Miksch had already planned for and budgeted, meaning the vacancy would then be that of a patrol officer.
Another lieutenant or deputy chief assessment center may also be needed, but that would be further into the year, he said.
In the meantime, calls for service remain a challenge. But where there was some concern about the numbers, Miksch focused on the positives in how his department approaches the people making those calls, or who are the subject of the calls.
making a difference
Miksch said there have been 5,640 calls so far this year.
“Which is actually up a fair amount from last year at this time by 800 to 900 calls,” he said, chalking up some of that to the department’s increased traffic enforcement this year. But while calls are up, arrests have decreased this year, according to Micksch in his regular report to the Select Board. To date there have been 26 arrests this year.
“One of the main reasons those numbers are down is there’s been a shift – and we try to do that through training, too – to some minor, non-violent offenses, we try not to bring anyone in the station,” the chief said. “We’re doing the same amount of work, whether we summons somebody to court or we lock them up.”
Cases involving violence, obviously call for talking a person into custody, Miksch said, but charges stemming from someone not having their drivers’ license, unless the suspension involved OUI or another substance issue where they don’t present a danger to the public or a similar offense, may skew the numbers away from the higher numbers of people in custody Hanson had seen in the past.
As the Police Officers’ Standard Training (POST) Committee, established a couple of years ago to certify officers, enters its third year, Miksch said he thinks complying with the new requirements should prove to be getting easier.
“It’s not that difficult, but it is time-consuming,” he said of procedures demanded of department leadership, rather than patrol officers, and May and June have proven to be their busiest months because of training deadlines.
Hanson has partnered with Halifax, Plympton and Carver to obtain a grant to hire a clinician, who was in place for a few months.
“She was absolutely wonderful,” Miksch said. “I’m a huge fan of this co-response model … if there was a nonviolent thing, we’d bring her along and she was extremely helpful.”
But Braintree had an opening, and she took that job.
“What tends to be a problem in the small communities, we’re not going to compete with them financially, so she left” he said. “Mental health right now – if you’re trying to find a clinician or anybody in the mental health field, good luck – they’re few and far between.”
The four communities are still looking and trying to find another clinician.
The department has also partnered with a new group in the area called The Loss Team, trained volunteers who come in to assist victims of suicide, the family members and friends of people who have committed suicide, Miksch said.
“Sadly, I’ve had to already use them,” Miksch said. “But, once again, it’s another great resource. [We’re] constantly trying to find those other groups, those other entities that can help us and still serve the citizens of the town.”
Hanson has for years, also part of East Bridgewater Hope, the substance abuse interdiction program, which has received another grant for training of Hanson officers.
“The good news is our fatal overdoses last year, were zero,” he said. There were 17 overdoes that required sending an officer out with a recovery coach.
“Most of the county was up a couple of percentage points, even in fatalities,” he said. “So, we’re doing well there.”
The office of District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz is working on a grant that would enable bringing community resource dogs in with the recovery coaches to help people with their anxiety and trying to work their way through their addiction problems.
Select board member Joe Weeks lauded Miksch and his department’s support for mental health services.
“A lot of people are afraid to access [these] services because they’re afraid they’re going to be arrested or penalized, or it’s going to follow them the rest of their lives,” Weeks said. “They’re isolated for a thousand different reasons, and you’ve really tried to make sure that people feel safe – and I feel it has to be said out loud – that I really hope that this legacy continues, because you’ve done an amazing job.”
Miksch said it is the “connection with the other chiefs” in the area that has done that. The big push for the clinician, for example, came from Carver, he said, noting that the officers have bought in and understand the need.
“But that’s a legacy, too,” chair Laura FitzGerald-Kemmett said. “You’ve now got officers [for whom] this is a routine part of what they’re used to – what is part of the job. It’s destigmatized [mental health], that’s important, so that’s a legacy.”
contract votes
In other business, the Select board voted to reaffirm executive session votes on:
- A three-year contract, July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2027 for Deputy Police Chief Michael Casey involing the compensation rate of $147,900 per year and a $2,00 stipend for inservice training each year; paid the last payroll each August, he is allowed detail work, but only after all other officers have been offered the details.
- A three-year contract for town Administrator Lisa Green, July 1. 2024 to June 30, 2027 to include: a 2-percent pay increase to $151,541.64 in the frst year, $154,571.88 n the secnd year, $158,43.18 for the third year; an educational stipend of a juris doctorate degree, which she holds, of $5,000 for each of the first two years and $4,500 for the third year, payable in the first payroll date of December each year; 30 vacation days with a possible carryover of not more than 10 days or a buyout with permission of the Select board; sick time accural of 1.25 days per month with a maximum carryover of 30 sick days per fiscal year and professional development and fees for professional memberships.