HAMLET — Police Chief Tommy McMasters this week announced a restructuring of the department, which included the promotion of four patrolman and the elimination of two top administrative positions.
The former chain of command had the chief at the top, a major position — which had been vacant for a while — captains over criminal investigations and patrol, a lieutenant and sergeant in investigations and four sergeants and other officers below them.
McMasters, who was hired in April, said the major position was eliminated and Capt. Randy Dover now oversees all operations.
The investigations and patrol heads, who report to Dover, are now lieutenants and there are four sergeants over patrol.
Former Patrol Capt. Marc Terry is now a resource officer at Richmond Community College, where, McMasters said, he enjoys working with the students.
“With the elimination of the major position and with the elimination of the other captain position, that freed up some monies for us to afford the opportunity to give officers the opportunity to advance to the rank of corporal,” McMasters said. “We’re functioning in a better fiscal place right now.
And, he added, it puts more people on the street with a working lieutenant heading up both departments.
Patrolmen Ray Morton, Charles Talley, Greg Stone and Michael Sale were recently promoted to corporal.
“Whenever the sergeant was out, oftentimes there was some uncertainty of who to go to when you had nothing but officers working,” the chief said. So now we definitely know that when the sergeant is out, the corporal will be working … there will always be one or the other.”
The promotions were approved by a review board consisting Dover, city Human Resources Director Edna Miles, two Hamlet residents and a supervisor out of Fayetteville.
“These people are going to be the ones interacting with these officers, so I thought it would be good to have citizens have a say-so in who’s being promoted,” McMasters said.
In the scored promotion process, the officers were graded an oral report to the review board, a report-writing review, a written response — where they had to give their opinions on three questions pertaining to the city of Hamlet — and appearance.
The officers had to score at least 70 out of 100 points to even be considered for promotion, McMasters said.
As for other promotions, Detective Chris Lampley is now the lieutenant over investigations.
Lt. Richard Jordan is interim patrol commander, but will be retiring at the end of June, so that position is considered open.
“I think the police chief is doing a great job over there,” Hamlet Mayor Bill Bayless said Thursday. “It seems things are going well.”
