6422-R1_ML&P_TownOfBuxton_2017-2018_AnnualReport-Web

Police Department (Cont.) January 2018 – December 2018

It is my intent to hire a Sergeant to replace Corporal Pulsoni when he retires in July. The Corporal position will then be retitled to Detective/Evidence Room Manager position. This will keep the officer staff at six (6) with a Sergeant, Detective and my position. This would allow for better follow-up on major crimes in Town and increased accountability for any property in the newly built Evidence Room. Ideally, I would recommend eight (8) police officers, one (1) Detective, one (1) Sergeant and of course my position for a total of eleven (11) full time sworn staff. The Town has been growing steadily and the demand for law enforcement services has increased as well. We rely heavily on our neighboring communities and the State Police when needed. We hiredWilliam“Kody” Blackwell to fill the last full time police officer positionwith the department. Officer Blackwell comes to us from previously working as a Corrections Officer (CO) in the York County Jail in Alfred. His previous experience as a CO has benefited him in how he interacts and treats people in Buxton as a police officer. He is very Community Policing oriented and is a fine addition to this department. He is expected to attend the mandated Basic Law Enforcement Training Program (BLETP) at the Maine Criminal Justice Academy (MCJA) in August of this year. Officer Hunter Smith graduated the BLETP in May and has returned to serve the citizens of Buxton. Officer Jessica Ramsay is in the process of training to become Town’s first Drug Recognition Expert (DRE). This specialized training will allow her to detect drug use in impaired drivers in addition to alcohol use. This tool will prove invaluable to the department as we are seeing more drug impaired drivers since the legalization of marijuana. Dispatch Center: We hired two (2) new full time (FT) dispatchers in 2018 to bring Dispatch Center staff full staffing.

Buxton resident Samantha Campobasso was hired to fill one of our two full time dispatcher vacancies in November of 2018 and completed her training with ease. She comes to us with no prior experience and is currently attending college. She has already been recognized by International Academies of Emergency Dispatch instructors as having great leadership skills in addition to her competency as a dispatcher. Samantha Campobasso

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