The hire fills a void left after council voted in September to terminate long-time chief Wayne Courtney – a decision about which council members remain tight lipped.
“I don’t have any comment on that,” said councilman Rufus Jones. “We gave him the opportunity to either resign or be fired, and he chose to be fired.”
Councilman Robert Hartman declined comment, barring a waiver signed by Courtney giving him permission to speak on the matter.
Ridgeway mayor Charlene Herring, however, was somewhat less reluctant, praising Courtney and bemoaning his loss.
“He is a fine person,” Herring said. “Trust is very important, and you could always trust him to do the right thing. He did his job well and you could trust him – what more could you ask from anyone?”
The reason for his termination, Herring said, was a dispute between Courtney and two councilmen – Jones and Hartman.
As for the details of that disagreement, Herring said, “I was not privy to that. It was some kind of personal difference.”
Courtney, who was ousted in a 3-2 majority vote, confirmed that his difficulties stemmed from differences with Jones and Hartman.
“I had a couple of council members that I didn’t see eye-to-eye with,” said Courtney, who had served the town for more than 10 years.
“Rufus wanted sensitive information that I would not give him,” Courtney said, such as who was calling in and filing complaints against whom.
“If I let that out, I’d have neighbors fighting neighbors,” he said, problems a small-town police chief doesn’t need.
Complaints about golf carts operating illegally on Main Street also set the chief at odds with Jones, who was one of the reported operators.
“It’s a state law,” Courtney said. “A small-town police chief can let so much go, but when you get a complaint on it, you’ve got to do your job.”
Courtney said he was also asked by council members to ignore traffic violations on certain days when the town or businesses in the town might be holding special events.
“I was charged with keeping the streets as safe and as crime-free as I could,” Courtney said, “and I took that charge seriously.”
It sounds as if two men put their own interests above those of the town. Perhaps the residents of Ridgeway should remember that the next time they vote.