ATHOL — Three finalists have emerged from a pool of 20 for the top cop job in town: a local police lieutenant, an outside police lieutenant and an FBI agent.
The town has scheduled a meet-and-greet for residents April 12 at 6 p.m. on the second floor of the Town Hall.
Town Manager Shaun Suhoski said the screening committee did good work, and any of the three would serve the town well.
“I’ve looked through the application materials of the finalists. They each bring a unique and extensive background in law enforcement but they’re each different,” Suhoski said.
The finalists are Athol Police Lt. Kevin Heath, Lunenburg Police Lt. Michael F. Luth, and Federal Bureau of Investigation Supervisory Special Agent Russell T. Kleber.
Heath is an Athol native and 36-year member of the police department, promoted to lieutenant in 2007 as second in command to outgoing Chief Timothy Anderson. He is a U.S. Air Force veteran, having served during the Vietnam War era and Gulf War, attaining a rank of technical sergeant. Heath coaches Little League baseball, is a middle school assistant football coach and past Boy Scout leader, according to his resume. He holds an associate’s degree in criminal justice and has attended numerous professional trainings.
Luth, of Groton, has worked in law enforcement for 24 years. He has served on the Lunenburg Police Department since 2004, as an officer, sergeant and lieutenant. From 2000 to 2004 he worked as a special agent with the Secret Service in Boston, with duties including protection of officials, financial crime investigations and recruitment. Prior to that, he worked for six years as a Tyngsborough police officer, rising to sergeant, and for two years as a Townsend reserve officer. He holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and a master’s in criminal justice administration.
Kleber has 29 years in law enforcement, beginning as a police officer in Charlton in 1987 and switching to Auburn in 1992, where he specialized in crisis intervention and domestic abuse, according to his resume. He began working for the FBI in 1996 as a special agent in Providence, R.I., moving to the Boston office in 2003 and to the FBI Academy in Quantico, Va., in 2010 as a full-time instructor for new recruits and domestic and international police.
Suhoski, who is charged with the final decision, is to meet with each of the three before the public meeting Tuesday. He hopes to have a final finalist several weeks later, after reference checks and negotiations. Anderson is set to retire July 9 after 34 years with the department.
You can reach Chris Curtis at:
ccurtis@recorder.com