Shelburne Police short-staffed and without a chief - WCAX

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SHELBURNE, Vt. (WCAX) - Like many police departments, Shelburne is short staffed and, as of last month, without a chief.

Former Chief Aaron Noble entered into a costly separation agreement with the town at the end of March. Noble’s attorney, Norman Blais, tells us he didn’t want to leave, but town officials thought it would be best.

“They were forced to negotiate with him to create an incentive to leave,” Blais told Channel 3. Blais said Noble contacted him for help once he suspected town officials were trying to oust him.

“If someone doesn’t like his management style or doesn’t like that he wore a suit to work instead of a uniform, that doesn’t even come close to being just cause,” Blais continued.

Since firing a tenured officer is difficult, town officials say a settlement was the most amicable option.

Noble will receive his pay through October of 2023, and benefits through October of 2022, costing taxpayers about $170,000.

“I think many people expressed concerns over the leadership and management in the department,” said Selectboard Chair Michael Ashooh. “I think many people expressed concerns over how tasks were being directed.”

Town officials say there’s been high turnover at the department for the past few years, leading them to hire an independent consultant to look at why.

The “Baker Report,” was put together based on 11 interviews from former staff. It describes Noble’s leadership as “creating unbalanced and inequitable treatment,” going on to say the circumstances will eventually cause safety issues.

“I don’t think we can say ‘oh we got away from a bad situation’. On the other side of that, I think we need to amend why we got into that situation,” said Shelburne resident Sean Moran at a meeting earlier this week.

While the town discusses their approach replacing Noble, Officer Michael Thomas is stepping up as acting chief. He says right now his focus is on hiring and giving officers a reason to stay with the department.

“The department needs good direction. We need a mission statement. We need long term and short term goals on how to build,” Thomas explained.

In the meantime, Noble will be available to the town as a consultant, if they choose to call on him.

Thomas says the department currently has five full-time officers, with two part-timers helping out.

Vermont State Police are also assisting with calls during the night-shift. The department is authorized to have 12 full-time officers, so while Thomas would like there to be more development opportunities, he says hiring is the immediate goal.

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