ROCKPORT — Michael Marino, a five-year veteran of the Rockport Police Department, has been promoted to sergeant, filling a vacancy created when Sgt. Robert Hickey retired in January.
Marino, appointed by the Board of Selectmen, was one of two candidates for the position. Patrolman Michael Soares was the other eligible candidate for the Civil Service post.
The Oct. 6 promotion inspired mixed emotions for Marino.
"I was both excited and pleased when I heard," Marino said yesterday. "At the same time, a little nervous about the transition from patrolman to sergeant."
Marino, a chief investigator for the department, will continue to serve on the midnight to 8 a.m. shift. The advancement, he said, means a lot for his career and family.
"I think it will allow me to stay involved in the development of the younger and newer officers coming into the profession and to learn the managerial and administrative aspects associated within the organization of the police department," he said. "In starting out in this new role, I want to concentrate on becoming both an efficient and knowledgeable sergeant that can be relied upon positively by his peers, co-workers and the residents of the town."
Asked to describe the criminal activity facing Rockport's officers, Marino said crime in town runs in cycles.
"It is really hard to pinpoint one issue in particular; I feel that currently the economy and addiction play a big role in what goes on in town and many areas alike," he said. "Lack of money sometimes creates stressful domestic issues within the family unit. It also creates situations where people resort to stealing from loved ones, motor vehicles, small businesses or homes in town to find money for bills or to support habits they struggle with."
Though Rockport is not immune to such crimes, Marino said they are committed on a "smaller scale" in Rockport when compared to other communities.
"Regardless of the frequency, it is always a problem when it happens in your town," Marino said. "It is a tough situation when hard-working victims are at a loss, which makes our jobs challenging."
Chief Tom McCarthy said he fully supports the selectmen's decision and described Marino as a capable leader and tremendous asset to the department.
McCarthy and Sgt. Robert Tibert will be eligible for retirement in January 2011 and Patrolman Roger Lesch is already eligible; the potential for high turnover in the near future made it all the more important for the department to gain a new sergeant.
"It's important to prepare for the future and get the people in place that you think would be the best choice to run the police department in the future," McCarthy said. "That's what it's really all about."
The promotion is also expected to save the town some money this year.
"I carried a first-step patrolman position in the fiscal year 2010 budget as a replacement for Hickey," McCarthy explained. "However, when I submitted that, I certainly had a suspicion the economy wasn't going to improve and future cuts were likely. So, if I had to cut from my budget, that is where it'd be taken, and the slot would not have been filled until the selectmen deemed appropriate."
McCarthy transferred money out of that patrolman position salary and into Marino's new sergeant-rate salary, leaving approximately $30,000 for the selectmen to use as they please. The patrolman position vacated by Marino will not be filled, the chief added.
Jonathan L'Ecuyer can be reached at jlecuyer@gloucestertimes.com.
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