HOULTON, Maine — It was standing room only Monday evening as about 60 residents packed the Houlton Town Council chambers to voice their support for the local police department.
The show of support came after a May 8 council meeting was held in which some councilors discussed whether it would be more economically viable to have the Aroostook County Sheriff’s Office take over policing duties in the town.
At that May 8 meeting, councilor Rosa McNally was cool to chairman Bill McCluskey’s idea, pointing out that a plan to eliminate dispatching services provided through the police department two years ago had failed.
Sheriff Darrell Crandall did not attend Monday’s meeting. But in a May 12 letter to the town council, obtained by The Houlton Pioneer Times, the sheriff stated, “At this stage, based upon public comments made by council members, I am not certain there is any real interest in contracting services with the county, but rather an interest in window shopping for cost comparisons. Given the significant amount of work that would go into my providing even a comprehensive cost estimate for a community and department as large as Houlton, I want you to know that I may choose to decline the council’s request.”
During Monday night’s meeting, McCluskey read a prepared statement to clarify something he said at the previous council meeting regarding the police coverage.
“I initiated the call to Sheriff Crandall at the request of the majority of the council,” McCluskey said. “Sheriff Crandall was unable to take my call at that moment, but he did reach out to me later. I misspoke by saying he reached out to me.”
McCluskey added that the council supports all of its town employees.
“Our request for a cost analysis from the Aroostook County sheriff’s office did not in any way diminish our respect for the Houlton Police Department and the work they do on a daily basis.”
He added that as elected officials every member of the council was “duty bound to look at every option spending your tax dollars.”
“After Sheriff Crandall has an opportunity to analyze the data provided by the town, our request for a proposal could be turned down,” he continued. “The sheriff’s office may not be up to the task. We have simply made a request.”
McCluskey reiterated that the council’s objective was to keep its finances at relatively current, healthy levels and improve them if possible.
Although discussion about police coverage was not on the agenda for Monday’s meeting, residents were able to show their support during the public comment session. Nine residents, including former police chief Joe McKenna, who is now employed by the sheriff’s office as division commander of the law enforcement unit, and Assistant District Attorney Kurt Kafferlin, all sang the praises of the Houlton Police Department.
“I was the police chief here for 20 months and have been in law enforcement for 41 years,” McKenna said. “I have worked with law enforcement agencies all over the country, both big and small. Let me tell you, you are not going to get anything better than what you already have now. Considering what they are working with, it’s phenomenal.”
McKenna reiterated that it was not that long ago that the council explored saving money by eliminating the police dispatchers, and instead using the sheriff’s office for dispatching services.
“At that time, you found you were not going to get anything better than you already had,” he said. “Everyone who lives in this town believes in and supports this police department. To even venture into a possibility of getting rid of it is ludicrous.”
Richard Rhoda, an attorney in Houlton, praised the department for its assistance in catching individuals who had stolen his car just last week.
“I was in my building on Bangor Street (last week) and I wasn’t even there five minutes, when someone stole my car,” Rhoda said. “The police department was there and within 45 minutes a culprit was arrested and my car was returned to me. We would not have had three people from the sheriff’s office there working the case within five minutes. Remember how important that immediate response can be and what a good, professional force we have here in Houlton.”
Kafferlin, who has spent the past seven years with the district attorney’s office, gave the council some statistics on how many cases he had seen that originated from the HPD. Kafferlin stated that in 2016, the local police department was responsible for 435 cases sent to the DA’s office. In comparison, the sheriff’s office submitted 193 cases countywide.
“The Houlton Police Department works extremely hard,” he said. “They are out patrolling and keeping the streets safe in Houlton. The amount of time and staffing the sheriff’s office would need to give to Houlton would have to be fantastic to match the current level of service we receive.”
Councilors did not address any of the public’s comments on the police matter. Chairman McCluskey reiterated it was not his, nor any other councilor’s intent to eliminate the police department and stated they were only seeking data. McCluskey said the topic would be revisited if the sheriff heard back from the sheriff.
