Fall River appoints Kelly Furtado, first female police chief in history. What to know.

Yahoo

18-05-2025

This story was updated to add more information.
FALL RIVER — The city's interim Police Chief Kelly Furtado has been appointed as permanent chief with a one-year contract, following a 5-4 vote from city councilors taken at the May 13 City Council meeting.
She is Fall River's first female police chief.
In a third attempt by Mayor Paul Coogan to ask the City Council to approve Furtado as permanent chief, councilors voting in favor of her appointment won by a slim majority. At an April 22 City Council meeting, two councilors objected to her appointment, expressing their concerns about the transparency of city official appointments.
In addition to confirming Furtado as the chief of police, councilors voted to adopt a home rule petition to return police chief selection back under the civil service process, and referred a proposed ordinance that would amend the contract for police chiefs, shortening their terms of service from three years to one to the Committee on Ordinances and Legislation.
'What I wanted was a process,' City Councilor Michelle M. Dionne said, 'and now we thankfully are at the point where we have received step one in creating a process … and perhaps take the politics out of the problem.'
According to attorney and City Councilor Bradford L. Kilby, the petition will be carried up to Boston to pass through the general court by state Sen. Michael Rodrigues, where Fall River's state delegates will have opportunity to sign off on it, but this process may unfold over six months to a year — outlasting the 45-day window outlined in the city's charter to select a police chief.
Ponte claimed he supported the petition but only for future appointments of chief of police. 'Not for the chief that we currently have,' he clarified.
Top cop appointment: Council objects to Furtado as Fall River police chief after mayor tries again to fill role
Furtado's contract is subjected to the appropriation of funding, and over the course of her tenure as interim chief, the position entailed a $190,000 salary, the city's Human Resources Director Nicholas Macolini said.
Macolini confirmed that at the $190,000 salary rate as interim, Furtado was paid as much as a permanent chief but was not under contract with the Fall River municipal government the same way a permanent chief is. The salary for the temporary interim chief — in this case, a personnel adjustment — was decided by the mayor.
With Furtado installed with five votes in favor of her appointment, she is now in line to receive a $215,000 salary.
City Councilor Shawn E. Cadime said he didn't disagree with the $215,000 salary for a police chief, but said he didn't support the appointment 'for a number of reasons.'
A sizable buyout of personal compensation time is unlikely, though it occurred with past police chief appointments.
Deputy Chief J.T. Hoar took the stand to share that Furtado had approximately 43 hours, or a little over a week, of personal time eligible for buyout, which drew questions from councilors over how Furtado could have expended the personal time.
'We promote the best': Kelly Furtado becomes Fall River's first female police chief
Dionne maintained that the chief of police position must be filled for the next year until the home rule petition becomes 'a reality' she said.
But Ponte expressed concerns about the timing of Furtado's appointment and the delay in returning the police chief position back under a civil service selection process. 'What is the rush?' he said. 'We have an interim chief. She has deputies. They're doing fine,' he said, suggesting that Furtado could remain as interim for longer.
During the meeting, Ponte attempted to object to Furtado's contract, inviting Cadime's support.
Ultimately, City Council President Joseph D. Camara claimed objections weren't allowed.
A minority of four councilors, including Cadime, Ponte, Camara, and in the eighth seat at his first council meeting, Ricky Tith, voted in opposition to Furtado's appointment, and her contract.
'One of her main focuses is to create a wellness committee within the department,' spokesman for the chief Ross Aubin said, citing a boost in morale and the health and wellbeing of officers having a renewed emphasis.
He shared on her behalf that she's proud to serve the community of Fall River as the city's first female chief, but she's 'even more proud' of her time spent serving in a range of capacities within the Fall River Police Department. This call to serve came at a time when she was considering retirement, Aubin said.
This article originally appeared on The Herald News: Furtado will lead Fall River Police Department as first female chief