Committee Report - C of APM - 9-23-19 — File 208926

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 1 of 4 Printed 9/25/2019 September 23, 2019 REPORT OF THE CONFIRMATION OF APPOINTMENTS AND PERSONNEL MATTERS COMMITTEE Attendee Name Title Status Arrived Jefferson Thomas ("J.T.") Scott Chair Present Ben Ewen-Campen Vice Chair Present Jesse Clingan Ward Four City Councilor Present Wilfred N. Mbah City Councilor at Large Present Mary Jo Rossetti City Councilor at Large Present Others present: Annie Connor, Julie McKenzie, Candace Cooper, Frank Wright, Chief Fallon, Deputy Chief Ward, Deputy Chief Carrabino, Deputy Chief Stanford, Officer Paul Anderson, Officer Devin Schneider, Sergeant Michael Capasso, Sergeant Michael Holland, Lt. Richard Lavey, Sergeant Michael Kiely and his attorney Mr. James Simpson. The meeting was held in the Committee Room and was called to order at 6:03 pm by Chairman Scott and adjourned at 10:16 pm. Chairman Scott received communication from Sergeant Kiely’s attorney to ask to go earlier on the agenda, but later withdrew that request. Approval of the September 12, 2019 Minutes RESULT: ACCEPTED 208620: That this Council's Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee be provided legal counsel to advise in the matter of #208571 and #208572, due to a conflict of interest expressed by the City Solicitor's Office. Chief Labor Counsel McKenzie stated that two candidates filed bypass appeals with Civil Service. This discussion was not appropriate for open session. Councilor-at-large Rossetti motioned and it was accepted to go into Executive Session to discuss strategy and litigation. No votes were taken in Executive Session. RESULT: WORK COMPLETED

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 2 of 4 Printed 9/25/2019 208621: That the Director of Personnel provide the Committee on Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters with any available public documents regarding the signatories to the police reserve list who were not appointed. This information was previously provided to the committee. RESULT: WORK COMPLETED 208622: That the City Solicitor and the Director of Personnel provide the Committee on Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters with a clarification of the civil service classification categories. There was a previous discussion about someone who was a veteran and did not receive veteran status. A request was made for an investigation. Ms. Cooper provided the committee with a copy of “Learn about Civil Service” which explains the status of eligibility list. RESULT: WORK COMPLETED 208528: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Paul Anderson to the position of Police Sergeant. Chief Fallon, Deputy Chief Carrabino, Stanford and Ward appeared before the committee to introduce the candidate. Officer Anderson has been with the Somerville Police Department since 2013. He was a part of the Critical Incident Stress Management along with 5 other officers from Somerville. The candidate responded to a question about “Hot Spot” policing which is a proactive approach, targeting areas of concern and to help prevent crimes. The candidate also stated that he is on first names basis with a number of businesses in Davis Square. He was asked by Councilor Ewen-Campen, how he views his role changing. He stated he will focus on officers that he will be supervising to provide a level of professionalism and respect. The committee went into executive session to ask questions about the candidate’s character and review other personnel documents. No votes were taken in executive session. The committee voted unanimously to appoint Officer Anderson to the position of Police Sergeant. RESULT: APPROVED 208529: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Devin Schneider to the position of Police Sergeant. Chief Fallon, Deputy Chief Carrabino, Stanford and Ward appeared before the committee to introduce the candidate. Officer Schneider received two life-saving medals. He is also on the Cobra Unit. Councilor Scott asked the candidate his thoughts on the use of the Cobra Unit. The candidate stated he has been on the Cobra Unit for one and half years for 5-6 deployments. He also stated that overall, it has been a positive experience covering such events like the Patriots game and Patriots parade. Ultimately, he is there to protect lives and property. Councilor Ewen- Campen inquired about the Mentoring program and Councilor Scott inquired about the

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 3 of 4 Printed 9/25/2019 difference between the Mentoring program and the FTO. He also took a class to understand key words in Spanish. He talked about taking the time to evaluate a situation, which is 90% of what a police officer does in their line of work. The committee went into executive session to ask questions about the candidate’s character and review other personnel documents. No votes were taken in executive session. There was a roll call vote and Councilors Clingan, Ewen-Campen, Rossetti and Mbah voted in favor of this appointment. Councilor Scott voted against the appointment. The motioned was approved for Officer Schneider to be appointed to the position of Police Sergeant. RESULT: APPROVED. [4 TO 1] AYES: Ewen-Campen, Clingan, Mbah, Rossetti NAYS: Scott 208527: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Michael Capasso to the position of Police Lieutenant. Chief Fallon, Deputy Chief Carrabino, Stanford and Ward appeared before the committee to introduce the candidate. Officer Capasso has been with SPD since 2008. He has completed numerous training and received Life Saving Medal in 2018. The candidate described himself as competitive and sees the new role as a change to the old way by providing crisis intervention and paying attention to mental health issues. He was asked about the main challenge for SPD and stated that integrating more crisis intervention and getting more officers to buy into the new way of policing. The committee went into executive session to ask questions about the candidate’s character and review other personnel documents. No votes were taken in executive session. The committee voted unanimously to appoint Sergeant Capasso to the position of Police Lieutenant. RESULT: APPROVED 208525: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Michael Holland to the position of Police Lieutenant. Chief Fallon, Deputy Chief Carrabino, Stanford and Ward appeared before the committee to introduce the candidate. The candidate has been with SPD since 2007. He has participated in a lot of training. In the SRR training sessions, he learned how to identify gang members and how to deal with domestic violence. The committee went into executive session to ask questions about the candidate’s character and review other personnel documents. No votes were taken in executive session. The committee voted unanimously to appoint Officer Holland to the position of Police Lieutenant.

Confirmation of Appointments and Personnel Matters Committee Page 4 of 4 Printed 9/25/2019 RESULT: APPROVED 208526: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Michael Kiely to the position of Police Lieutenant. Chief Fallon, Deputy Chief Carrabino, Stanford and Ward appeared before the committee to introduce the candidate. Sergeant Kiely and his attorney Mr. Simpson stated he has been with SPD since 1995. Chairman Scott asked if anything had changed since the last time they met, approximately 18 months ago. Attorney Simpson stated Sergeant Kiely has the ability to work with many jurisdictions and agencies. He has been managing a budget that has brought funding to SPD and wants to use some of the funds for the Boathouse to get the Somerville youth out in the water. He has hosted regional meetings with police, fire, health and human services and schools. The committee went into executive session to ask questions about the candidate’s character and review other personnel documents. No votes were taken in executive session. The committee voted unanimously not to appoint Sergeant Kiely to the position of Police Lieutenant. RESULT: NOT APPROVED 208524: Requesting confirmation of the appointment of Richard Lavey to the position of Police Captain. Chief Fallon, Deputy Chief Carrabino, Stanford and Ward appeared before the committee to introduce the candidate. The candidate has been with SPD since 2003 and attended a number of training programs along with FBI Executive Leadership Institute. As the captain, he will focus on family services, hate crimes, sexual assault and mental health issues. The committee went into executive session to ask questions about the candidate’s character and review other personnel documents. No votes were taken in executive session. The committee voted unanimously to appoint Lieutenant Lavey to the position of Police Captain. RESULT: APPROVED