BURLINGTON — Mayor Miro Weinberger announced Friday he would nominate former Colchester Police Chief Jennifer Morrison to head up the city’s police force on an interim basis as officials search for a replacement for former chief Brandon del Pozo.
Weinberger also announced he had placed Deputy Chief Jan Wright on administrative leave for using anonymous social media accounts to defend the department and follow residents. Del Pozo resigned Monday after admitting last week he was behind a Twitter account that had trolled activist Charles Winkleman.
Weinberger will ask the City Council to approve Morrison’s appointment as interim chief at its next meeting, Jan. 6. Deputy Chief Jon Murad will continue in the acting chief role until Morrison is appointed.
Morrison joined the Burlington Police Department in 1990 and worked at the department for 23 years before serving as Colchester’s chief from 2013 to 2018. Morrison was the department’s first female deputy chief.
“She will bring years of leadership experience to this role at a critical period for the Burlington Police Department,” Weinberger said.
Morrison said that while it was a tumultuous time for the department, its officers would continue to do their jobs.
“Sometimes it’s easy to be distracted by the headlines and the missteps that have happened,” Morrison said. “But the real story of BPD is one of 154 years of outstanding service to the community. The real story is about dedicated professionals who innovate, serve, sacrifice, and risk their lives for the citizens and visitors of Burlington.”
Weinberger said he was appreciative of Murad’s service but he thought it would be unfair to ask Murad, who has only been at the department for a little over a year, to serve in the interim chief role.
“As I have had a chance to reflect a little bit on the immediate challenges before the department, I think it would be unfair to ask Deputy Chief Murad to serve in this role that will last for a number of months, simply as a function of his limited experience still with this department,” Weinberger said.
Initially, Wright was named acting chief following Del Pozo’s resignation. However, Wright told Weinberger shortly after she was named to the position that she had operated a “Lori Spicer” Facebook account that commented on posts about the department. The investigation into Wright’s social media use is ongoing and “nearing completion,” Weinberger said.
In one post, Wright’s “Lori Spicer” account wrote to Winkleman: “Just admit it. You are obsessed with Chief Del Pozo. You can’t get enough of him. He definitely lives rent free inside your head. Seek help.”
The city will launch a full national search for its new chief. Weinberger said he would be in communication with the council and police commission early next year to determine the details of the search.
The search will take months, Weinberger said. Morrison does not plan on seeking the job on a permanent basis.
The city has hired a consultant to do a full investigation of the department’s social media policies, Weinberger said. Anita Tinney of Employee and Labor Relations Academy will lead that investigation and will start Jan. 3, the mayor said.
“The investigation will seek to understand the department’s existing practices around social media use, develop clear standards for behavior and determine what training and/or policy changes will be needed to ensure those standards are implemented and that there’s clarity about expectations throughout the department,” Weinberger said.
Weinberger has told all city employees they should follow the draft social media policy that is currently being considered by the council’s human resources committee.
Correction: This article originally misstated that Jennifer Morrison was BPD’s first deputy chief, when in fact she was the first female deputy chief.
