To the Editor:

As a former city council member, I have the following observations about the upcoming ballot question concerning the City Marshall position:

1. Several have complained that switching to an appointed position would somehow take away the ability of the citizens of Fayette to select the head of their police department. That is not correct. In fact, changing to an appointed Chief of Police makes change easier. If a Marshall were not fulfilling his duties, the citizenry would have to wait until the next election to remove him or her (potentially as long as four years) and hope that a qualified person desires to run in opposition. A Marshall can be removed before the election only for breaking the law, whereas an appointed Chief of Police may be removed at any time by the City Council for a much broader range of reasons, not just for breaking the law. If the council does not want to remove someone you think is incompetent, you may elect at least two new council members every two years. The entire complexion of the council can change in one election.

2. Elected marshals are not required to have the skills necessary to operate a Police Department. Certainly, they must have the training to be a police officer, but that does not include training in managing people, handling people who are always armed, hiring and training new officers, and negotiating the complexities of not only city ordinances, but also state and federal mandates. Elected marshals gain their office by being popular, not by being highly skilled.

3. Liability issues have changed in the last 50 years. Several incidents have occurred in the last decade that could have opened up the city to multi-million-dollar lawsuits. Training to avoid such issues is badly needed.

4. Small town police departments should have significant grant income. Fayette has none. The sources of that money are still out there. A requirement of a Chief of Police would be to seek that money, using whatever resources he or she can find.

5. Finding an appropriately qualified person in a small town is difficult. The likelihood that someone who is qualified in all areas of the job, who would move to Fayette just for the chance to run for the office, is negligible. A City Council can advertise, vet, interview, and solicit candidates from other places before requiring that the successful applicant move here.

I am not acquainted with Mr. Wells, our current City Marshall, but by all reports, he has started out well. If he grows into the job, I see no reason that he would not be the first hire as Chief of Police. He would then have a much better defined set of responsibilities and have access to much more training.

Rhys N. Thomas