This story was originally produced by the Valley News. NHPR is republishing it in partnership with the Granite State News Collaborative.
New Grafton Police Chief Jeffrey Cogswell has stepped down just one week after being elected to the position.
Cogswell, 62, announced in two Grafton Facebook groups on Monday that he will not follow through with the role he was elected to in a contested race at Town Meeting on March 10.
“After considerable reflection this weekend, I feel it would not be in the town’s best interest for me to accept the position,” Cogswell wrote on Facebook and in a letter to the Selectboard.
However, Cogswell did not disclose exactly what it was that prevented him from serving.
“After a spirited election, and changing my future plans for this role which I was looking forward to, I have received news that will make me physically unable to take on the position, and/or fulfill the requirements,” he wrote without elaborating.
In response to a comment on his own social media post, Cogswell did allude to some type of transgression in his past.
“This was a one time thing from 35 years ago,” he wrote in a Facebook post. “Never again, and has never been an issue.”
To assume the role of police chief, Cogswell was required to attain certification through the state’s Police Standards Board, and a roadblock in that process appears to be what motivated his decision to decline the office, Selectman Steve Darrow said Monday by phone.
“I know that he had to pass a series of tests, both mental and physical, and so it just seems like he didn’t make it through that,” Darrow said.
In the same comment on Facebook, Cogswell wrote that appealing the state board’s decision would put his personal information in a public record.
Cogswell did not respond to multiple requests for an interview by phone and email.
Instead of appointing a new chief, the Selectboard will turn to Russell Poitras, who retired as chief years ago and now will continue as an interim administrative chief until the next election. He has been in the role for several months already since the resignation of Police Chief Mitchell Briggs, whose term was set to end this month.
The board also recently appointed Roy Holland, Enfield’s police chief, to serve as a part-time officer until the next election in March 2027. The Selectboard granted Poitras permission to hire Holland on Feb. 3, said Darrow.
Poitras proactively hired Holland to work temporarily doing both patrolling and training since it was already expected to take several months for either candidate to be able to be certified to work as chief, said Selectboard Chairman Ed Grinley.
At Town Meeting, voters were asked to choose between Cogswell and Sythnia Ravell, neither of whom were active law enforcement officers. Cogswell received 178 votes to Ravell’s 100 votes.
At the same meeting, voters rejected an article that would have had future police chiefs appointed by the Selectboard rather than elected.
Prior to Town Meeting, Darrow voiced concerns over the qualifications of both Cogswell and Ravell. In Cogswell’s case, he had not been an active duty officer in over a decade. In Ravell’s case, she has never worked in any law enforcement capacity.
But for the fourth time in recent years, voters declined to make the chief an appointed position, which some feel is best to ensure the choice stays with the people of Grafton.
“For years now, the Selectboard has been trying to pass a warrant article to change it to appointed, and has sold us the idea that once it’s an appointed position, they’re going to find the most qualified person on earth to come and run the department,” Grafton resident Yaakov Abuhav said after the Tuesday meeting. “And we all know that’s not going to be the case.”
On Tuesday, Darrow said Cogswell’s decision put the town in a difficult position in terms of filling an unexpected vacancy in an elected role.
“This is why it’s been on the ballot,” said Darrow. “So we could try to avoid this situation.”
Poitras and Holland jointly will run the three-person police department, both on a part-time basis.
Selectboard members expressed hope that qualified candidates will take interest in next year’s police chief race.
If the town does decide to make the police chief an appointed position in the next election, it would be effective in 2028, said Darrow.
