DOVER – The Board of Selectmen is pleased to announce that Joseph Vinci has been appointed Chief of the Dover Police Department.
Vinci comes to the Town of Dover from the Westwood Police Department where he serves as lieutenant and is the Operations Division commander. Vinci began with the Westwood Police Department as a patrol officer in 2006. He ascended to positions of increasing responsibilities, to sergeant from 2012-2018, to detective sergeant from 2018-2019, and to lieutenant in 2019.
Through his roles in Westwood, Vinci assisted with the department’s Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission (MPAC) accreditation process and helped to bring a Mental Health Clinician to the department. He has managed training for the department’s sworn and civilian staff, oversaw Internal Affairs/Professional Standards functions, as well as transitioned the department to a new records management system, scheduling system and policy review system.
Vinci has also served as an instructor at Roger Williams University in Bristol, RI, since 2014, teaching the Field Training & Evaluation Program to sworn officers through RWU’s Justice System Training & Research Institute.
Vinci has completed the FBI-LEEDA Trilogy Series. He holds a Master’s degree in criminal justice administration from Curry College, a Bachelor’s degree in government from Dartmouth College, and a certificate in Local Government Leadership and Management from the Massachusetts Municipal Association-Suffolk University.
The Board of Selectmen appointed a seven-member Police Chief Screening Committee, chaired by Selectman John Jeffries. The Town hired Public Safety Consultants, LLC, headed by Hamilton Police Chief Russell Stevens, to assist with the search.
The Town received 30 resumes, and selected 12 candidates to submit written responses. The Committee narrowed the pool of candidates to six. Those candidates completed a Technical Assessment of Police Policy, Law, and Response before a panel of police chiefs, which were reviewed by the Screening Committee.
The Screening Committee selected two finalists, who were interviewed by the Board of Selectmen on Dec. 11.
The Board of Selectmen voted to appoint Vinci on Thursday, Dec. 14, and approved an employment contract following successful negotiations on Thursday, Dec. 28.
“The Town received numerous highly qualified candidates, and the Search Committee spent many hours to select our finalists,” said Selectman Jeffries. “The Assessment Center gave us a deep understanding of the day-to-day responsibilities of a police chief, and were thoroughly impressed with our final two candidates. We welcome Chief Vinci and look forward to seeing what he can achieve.”
Vinci will begin in late January and succeed Chief Peter McGowan, who retired in September.
“I am honored to be appointed as Chief, and excited about leading the men and women of the Dover Police Department,” Vinci said. “It’s clear Dover places a high value on collaboration and building partnerships, which aligns with my vision of community policing.
The Board of Selectmen wishes to thank Police Chief Screening Committee members , Paul Copponi, Kirsten Bartlett, Joseph DeSalvo, Sarah Monaco, Nicole Seferian, and Dan Burger for their hard work and diligence during this process.
