CITY OF SALEM, MASSACHUSETTS

Kimberley Driscoll
Mayor
July 17, 2014
Honorable Salem City Council
Salem City Hall
Salem, MA 01970
Ladies and Gentlemen o t!e Council"
# am $ritin% to you about a matter t!at is im&ortant and critical to t!e uture o our City' As you (no$, #
remain )ery concerned about t!e manner in $!ic! t!e City $ill select our ne*t +olice C!ie ,also (no$n
as City Mars!al in our Code o -rdinances.' Gi)en t!at our current C!ie +aul /uc(er is e*&ected to
&re)ail in !is cam&ai%n or State 0e&resentati)e, # ully e*&ect t!at $e $ill !a)e a )acancy in t!is &osition
sometime ater 1o)ember' At &resent, in order to select t!e ne*t C!ie t!e City must ad!ere to a Ci)il
Ser)ice &rocess t!at restricts our ability to ill t!is )acancy in an o&en and robust manner' 0ecruitment
and selection o t!e ne*t C!ie, under t!e current system, is limited solely to members o t!e current
munici&al de&artment and most li(ely only indi)iduals in t!e ran( o Ca&tain $ill be eli%ible to
&artici&ate' As you (no$, one o our more senior Ca&tains, /om Griin, 2ust announced !e $ill be
resi%nin% to acce&t a &osition as a non3Ci)il Ser)ice C!ie in t!e City o +eabody' /!is urt!er limits t!e
&ool o eli%ible in3!ouse a&&licants !ere in Salem' 4!ile # do belie)e t!ere are ca&able and 5ualiied
&ersonnel in t!e Salem +olice 6e&artment $!o $e )alue and certainly $ant to consider or ad)ancement,
limitin% our c!oices solely to in !ouse candidates does not ma(e %ood sense at t!is time' Moreo)er, it is
not a &ractice $e ty&ically ollo$ $!en illin% ot!er !i%! ran(in% &ositions in t!e City'
4it! t!at in mind, # am as(in% or your consideration to !el& ensure t!at $e !a)e t!e best &ossible
&rocess to attract t!e best &ossible candidates or t!e &osition o +olice C!ie in t!e City o Salem' As #
see it, $e !a)e t$o o&tions at !and"
1. /!e Council could ado&t an -rder to send a !ome rule &etition to t!e le%islature remo)in% t!e
&osition o City Mars!al 7 C!ie o +olice 7 rom t!e constraints o M'G'L' C!a&ter 81 ,Ci)il
Ser)ice. and t!ereby allo$ or a more o&en and locally controlled !irin% &rocess'
# !a)e &re)iously submitted a &ro&osed !irin% ordinance t!at $ould allo$ or a robust &rocess t!at
includes Council and community in&ut as &art o t!e selection eort' /!is ordinance $ould
establis! a ne$ &rocess or !irin% t!e +olice C!ie $!ic! $ould e*&and t!e o&&ortunity to a&&ly
or C!ie to e*ternal candidates, as $ell as a ar %reater number o current members o t!e
6e&artment' #n s&ea(in% $it! many o you # !a)e !eard e*&ressed a re&eated desire to stren%t!en
t!e &reerence or internal candidates in t!e ordinance9 t!ereore # $ould li(e to &ro&ose t!at $e
incor&orate lan%ua%e into t!e &ro&osed !irin% ordinance t!at $ould e*&licitly &ro)ide a &reerence
or local candidates' #n ot!er $ords, in t!e e)ent t!e t$o inal candidates are e5ually 5ualiied but
one is an e*ternal candidate and t!e ot!er an internal candidate, t!e internal candidate s!all recei)e
t!e a&&ointment' # $ould also be o&en to an amendment sti&ulatin% t!at ne$ C!ies $ould be
!ired under a contract, &er M'G'L' C!a&ter 41 : 10;-, or a term o at least t!ree, but no more,
t!an i)e years' /!is lan%ua%e !as been used in ot!er cities and &ro)ides &rotections to uture
c!ies rom &olitical s!its bet$een c!an%es o administrations' # belie)e t!is ordinance re&resents
t!e best &ros&ect or ensurin% our ne*t &olice c!ie is !ired t!rou%! a &rocess t!at &ro)ides or t!e
%reatest trans&arency, com&etition, local control, and o&&ortunity or as many o our o$n Salem
&olice oicers to com&ete or t!e leaders!i& &osition'
2. #n t!e alternati)e, s!ould t!e Council not be $illin% to ado&t a !ome rule &etition to remo)e t!e
+olice C!ie &osition rom Ci)il Ser)ice, # $ould as( t!at you ado&t an -rder to &lace t!is matter
beore t!e )oters at t!e u&comin% 1o)ember 4
t!
election'
# t!e Council $ere to submit t!is matter to t!e )oters o Salem t!ey $ould be ollo$in% t!e same
&ractice t!at $as ollo$ed $!en t!e City ado&ted ci)il ser)ice' Moreo)er, se)eral communities
!a)e re&ealed ci)il ser)ice &ositions in t!is manner in order to stren%t!en and im&ro)e t!eir !irin%
&ractices' Most recently t!e City o Gloucester &laced t!is 5uestion beore t!eir )oters durin% t!e
last state$ide election' # reco%ni<e many o you may !a)e reser)ations about o&enin% u& t!is
!irin% &rocess' =)en i you still belie)e t!is may not be t!e ri%!t course o action, # !o&e you $ill
at least %i)e t!e )oters o Salem an o&&ortunity to $ei%! in on t!e 5uestion'
Lastly, # $ant to ma(e sure you (no$ t!at time is o t!e essence $it! res&ect to t!is matter' >or any
measure to be ado&ted 7 eit!er a !ome rule &etition ado&ted by t!e Council or an order to &lace t!is
measure beore t!e )oters 7 it must be a&&ro)ed in Au%ust to aord am&le time to act by all &arties' Since
t!e Council is not sc!eduled to meet a%ain until Se&tember, t!is may re5uire t!at a s&ecial City Council
meetin% be !eld in Au%ust to ta(e t!is matter u&' I trust you share my concern regarding the
importance of this matter and would ask that the Council consider holding both a Committee of the
Whole and a Special City Council meeting on August 7
th
, so that we can fully discuss the enclosed
orders and the previously submitted hiring ordinance. If the Council chooses to vote this matter
down or not to take it up in a timely manner, the only way this issue can be placed before the
legislature would be via an initiative petition reuiring the collection of nearly !,""" signatures in
the ne#t several weeks. With that in mind, I hope you will act swiftly$one way or the other$ so that
option can be e#ercised if necessary.
# cannot underscore enou%! t!e im&ortance o t!is to&ic' ?nder t!e current system no more t!an a small
!andul o internal candidates may a&&ly or C!ie' - t!ese e$, t!e Mayor may select rom t!e to& t!ree
scorin% candidates, $it!out in&ut rom t!e community, our unions, t!e Council, or anyone else' /!is is a
de&artment $it! a @9 million bud%et and 90 em&loyees' # am %reatly concerned t!at, $!ile $e !a)e been
ortunate in our leaders in t!e &ast, $e are &lacin% our City in a &recarious &osition by limitin% bot!
&ublic in&ut and &otential a&&licants and reducin% t!e o&&ortunity or %reater com&etition, not 2ust rom
e*ternal candidates, but rom many o our o$n e*ce&tional ran(3and3ile &olice oicers'
+lease note t!at o t!e 8A8 &olice c!ies in Massac!usetts, 2;0 are not &art o t!e state ci)il ser)ice !irin%
system' ?nli(e many o t!ese ot!er communities, !o$e)er, our &ro&osal is not sim&ly to lea)e t!e 180
year old state im&osed !irin% system, but rat!er to cou&le it $it! a ne$, more o&en &rocess, $it! stron%er
local controls, %reater em&!asis on merit and credentials, and increased trans&arency and &ublic in&ut' #
trust you s!are my concern re%ardin% t!e im&ortance o t!is matter and res&ectully re5uest a Committee
o t!e 4!ole meetin% to discuss t!ese orders and t!e already submitted !irin% ordinance and or a s&ecial
meetin% to be set ollo$in% t!at committee meetin% in order or t!e ull Council to )ote on t!e measures' #
am, as al$ays, !a&&y to s&ea( $it! you and ans$er any and all 5uestions you may !a)e or me on t!is
critical matter'
Sincerely,
Bimberley 6riscoll, Mayor