Bradford, Vt.
The Bradford Selectboard on Tuesday night extended an offer to Bradford police Sgt. Russell Robinson, who accepted the opportunity to become the town’s next chief on Jan. 3, Chairman Ted Unkles said on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, Stiegler, the current Bradford chief who beat out longtime Grafton County Sheriff Douglas Dutile in the November election, is preparing his exit and said he vows to work with Robinson to ensure a seamless transition.
He hopes to do the same with Dutile. Stiegler said the two had not spoken since before the election, which Stiegler won, 21,577-17,353.
Dutile on Wednesday said he plans to reach out to Stiegler to “make the transition as smooth as possible.”
“We want things to continue on in an upward direction with the department,” Dutile said.
Dutile, a Haverhill Republican, said his loss didn’t come as a surprise. Democrats took control of the New Hampshire House and Senate and, with that, came a shake up in local races on the ballot, he said.
“It was just a party thing,” Dutile said. “It’s too bad.”
If he had won re-election, Dutile said this would have been his last term.
The 61-year-old Dutile has been in law enforcement for 40 years and will settle into retirement two years early, he said.
“It has been a great career,” he said. “I was ready to retire.”
Dutile will finish out the year; Stiegler will be sworn in on Jan. 2, the same day that the new Grafton County attorney, Marcie Hornick, will be sworn in. Hornick is replacing Lara Saffo, who is stepping down.
For now, Stiegler, 51, still is focused on providing services in Bradford.
He does have his eyes set on the future though. Since the victory, he hasn’t yet set foot in the Grafton County Sheriff’s Office, but he said he has had a chance to talk to several employees in the county who have been supportive and “are ready to help me with any learning curves.”
Like any job, the new post will come with challenges, but Stiegler said “we will either find a way through it, over it or around it.”
Stiegler plans to keep all of the current Grafton County Sheriff’s Office staff on the books, despite rumors that he wouldn’t, he said.
“Several of the employees who have contacted me from Grafton County Sheriff’s Office also expressed concerns about changes in personnel,” he said. “I am perplexed where this information came from but it’s simply not worth probing as it’s a fictional assertion. … Nothing could be further from the truth.
“I am hopeful to have a meeting with everyone on Jan. 2 and listen to what aspirations and concerns the employees have that will benefit the department,” he added.
Stiegler, who lives in North Haverhill, has been with the town of Bradford for about five years. He will be sad to go, he said.
“There are a lot of great people here and they have worked so well with the police department to keep crime low and to keep us abreast of what’s going on and their concerns,” Stiegler said.
The town will be in good hands though, he said.
Attempts to reach Robinson, who has since retired from Vermont State Police, were unsuccessful.
“Russ is a tremendous asset to the police profession,” Stiegler said. “It was an honor to recommend him without reservation to the Bradford Selectboard…. I’m confident he will serve the town of Bradford with the competency and character that he has carried over a 35-plus-year career.”
Unkles, the Selectboard chairman, said Robinson seemed like the best match.
“He understands our community, he knows that the Selectboard and our public safety committee are strong advocates of community policing and he is very much into that style of policing,” Unkles said. “We already knew it was a good fit.”
Unkles said in an email on Wednesday that Robinson’s salary will be $78,000. The figure is more than the town currently pays Stiegler, but Unkles said Robinson gets his health insurance through the state as a retired state trooper, meaning the total Steigler receives for salary plus benefits is actually more than Robinson will be paid.
The town will conduct a search to fill Robinson’s position.
Jordan Cuddemi can be reached at jcuddemi@vnews.com or 603-727-3248.