ATHOL — Police Chief Craig Lundgren introduced the latest addition to the Police Department and also announced a promotion from within it ranks at the Athol Selectboard’s meeting on Tuesday.
The new officer joining the force is Fitchburg resident Andrew Morris. Lundgren said Morris is just one course shy of earning a master’s degree in criminal justice from Fitchburg State University and has completed the full-time police academy.
“He is completely certified, so I like to call him a ‘plug and play,’” said Lundgren with a wide smile. “We hired him several months ago as a reserve. He wanted to get some experience in a small-town municipal police force.” The chief said Morris has also spent two years with the police force at FSU.
“I spoke with his chief,” Lundgren continued. “I spoke with his sergeant. They speak highly of him and they didn’t want to see him go. But we’re very pleased that he accepted our offer. So, he’ll be our new full-time patrolman.”
Lundgren then informed the board that officer Paul Forand had been promoted to the rank of detective.
“If you’ll remember,” he said, “we only have two detectives; a sergeant and then a detective who does all of the investigations and narcotics work and works with the Drug Task Force.”
He said the detective’s position had been vacant for several months when the previous holder of the position left to take a job out of state. “So, that position has been unfilled.”
“But Paul stepped up,” Lundgren continued. “He volunteered to come in one day a week, in addition to all his patrol duties. He keeps a foot in the door with the Drug Task Force and the district attorney’s task force and helps Sergeant (Douglas) Kaczmarczyk with all his investigations. He has done so well and now, with the addition of Officer Morris, we have the ability to promote him to full-time detective.
“He has done incredible work in this town,” Lundgren said. “A lot of it goes unnoticed. A lot of it doesn’t get to publicized.” Turning to Forand, Lundgren added, “I’m really pleased with what you’ve done, Paul.”
“Madam chair,” interjected Town Counsel John Barrett, “I’d be remiss if I didn’t add something to the chief’s comments. I worked with Detective Forand on the Hart vs Athol Police Department case, and he really carried the flag for the town during the prosecution of that case up to the appellate division of the district court. It was Paul’s groundwork that actually allowed us to win in the appeals court, and I wanted to give him kudos for that.”
In 2022, Christopher Hart was cited for unlawfully operating a recreational vehicle on a public way, and operating a recreational vehicle without a helmet. Hart appealed the citations, arguing that his Can-Am Maverick X3 Quadricycle, which bore a Montana registration plate, didn’t qualify as a recreational vehicle.
In issuing its decision in July of this year, the Appeals Court concluded that “the Maverick is a ‘recreation vehicle’ that may not be operated on a public way … and that any privilege Hart had … to operate the Maverick under its Montana registration had expired by the time the citation was issued.”