Honesdale council hires full-time police officer for first time in years

Honesdale Borough Police Department is growing, raising hopes of both the mayor and police chief of eventually returning to full, 24-hour police coverage. On March 25, the council hired another full-time police officer, and the number of part-time officers is increasing.

Security cameras also have been installed in Central Park.

Councilor Jason Newbon made the motion to offer conditional employment to Jennifer Esterline as a full-time officer, as of June 1. The Civil Service Commission interviewed her and made the recommendation. This is the first full-time police hiring in several years.

Mayor Derek Williams stated that Esterline has been amenable to helping with the review of the standard operating procedure of the police department to reflect a modern-day workforce. "I welcome her into the team," Williams said. "She is an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) and has a lot of de-escalation training. Those things are very important in our police force."

On Feb. 2, the mayor swore in both Jennifer Esterline and her husband Kenneth Esterline as part-time police officers. They were approved for hire last July.

Councilor James Hamill cast the sole dissenting vote to hire her. In an interview, Hamill stated that his vote had nothing to do with her as an individual, but he was concerned that the council had not adequately had discussed in a public meeting the range of options for what was best for the borough regarding police coverage. These include a regional approach with Waymart and Hawley police departments or becoming an all-part-time force.

Noting Esterline was the only candidate, Hamill questioned if the process had been sufficiently competitive. He said he felt it would have been better if the council members had at least her resume before them when they were asked to vote, and a recommendation from the police chief.

The borough budget for the past three years has included a line-item for a new full-time officer. $42,620 was budgeted for 2024.

Increased coverage foreseen

Mayor Williams reported administering the oath of office for a new patrol officer, Mike Church, and two more part-time officers to be sworn in soon. "So, that is quite a significant increase in coverage and availability that we have with the officers."

"As we have talked about, there are a lot of things that people would like their police to be able to do," Williams said. "It is difficult to do those things without enough resources and staff. As we are getting more staff, we are starting to reach the point where we are having more shifts covered more regularly, and potentially even crossing the threshold we have not been able to do in a long time with having some coverage overnight with overnight shifts."

Chief Richard Southerton, in an interview, said he shared that goal, while cautioning that it is not easy to schedule part-timers since most have other jobs. For a long while, he said, they were down to just three full-time officers, including himself, and no part-timers. Currently serving are three full-time and eight part-time officers. Others recently hired are still being trained.

He said it has been several years since they have been able to cover the third shift.

Honesdale council has struggled for decades to ensure adequate budgeting and staffing of the police force. In 2005, for example, there were nine full-time and six part-time officers.

During public comment, James Harris complained about the excess speeding he observes early in the morning, saying his workday begins as early as 3:30 a.m. "Church Street and Main Street are a racetrack," Harris said.

The mayor stated that if they can staff the third shift with part-time officers, this can help. Chief Southerton, later, reminded that the borough police department is not on duty between midnight and 8 a.m.; State Police covers the borough in those hours.

"It's not just 35 miles per hour," Harris added. "I'm talking highway speeds... Church Street is three quarters of a mile, so is Main Street. It is amazing to see people not obeying the speed limit."

Council President James Brennan commended Mayor Williams for the work he has been doing with the police department. "It was very difficult when we only had a three-man police force to patrol on Main and Church Street," Brennan said.

Security camera policy

During March, security cameras were installed high on a pole in Central Park, giving a wide-eye view. The council unanimously approved a resolution designating the borough manager as responsible for reviewing the footage.

That evening, the council also approved the conditional hiring of Susan Shaffer to serve in this newly created administrative role.

More: Honesdale council picks first full-time borough manager

Willams said it would be helpful for the public to know who else will be able to review the footage and under what circumstances. He said he appreciates both concerns over public privacy and the need for the police to inspect the footage in investigating a crime.

Borough Secretary Judy Poltanis stated that she will have access until the new borough manager starts. The police department, she said, does not want to have designated access. Solicitor Richard Henry stated if the police or another agency feels there is a need to review footage, they should notify the borough manager to save the tape, and obtain a court subpoena.

"There shouldn't be any expectation of privacy in a public park," Henry said. "If you are over there, wave to the camera, but that is not how our system works."

Williams said, "We all know there is a lot of signage out there... particularly the sign that says you can't [go] bicycling in the park... but it is also probably the safest place for a kid to have a bicycle in town. If we have the opportunity to investigate a crime, it would be nice to say if the policy said we are not investigating a 10-year-old riding a bicycle, so his parents get fined for some infraction of potentially some overburdensome rule."

The camera system was purchased in February for $5,855.42.

"We definitely have a very safe community," said Williams added, citing Federal Bureau of Investigation crime data reported by Honesdale Borough Police Department. Both violent and property crimes reported by the borough police have dropped in the 10-year period starting in 2012, following national and state trends.

To review the FBI crime data report, visit cde.ucr.cjis.gov/LATEST/webapp/#/pages/explorer/crime/crime-trend.

Peter Becker has worked at the Tri-County Independent or its predecessor publications since 1994. Reach him at pbecker@tricountyindependent.com or 570-253-3055 ext. 1588.

This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: Honesdale police department growing, full-time officer hired