Southampton Town, Village Appoint New Police Chiefs

Town of Southampton and Village of Southampton officials appointed new chiefs of their respective police departments days apart following a pair of high profile searches to replace longtime leaders in each agency.

Southampton Town Police Capt. James Kiernan was promoted on December 8 to police chief, replacing Steven Skrynecki, who led the department for six years before dying in October.

And Suffolk County Deputy Police Commissioner Anthony Carter was named the next chief of the Southampton Village Police Department on December 12, taking over for acting police chief Susan Hurteau, who was appointed as captain.

“I pledge that this department will do all that it can to ensure a safe environment for our residents, guests, visitors and businesses,” said Kiernan, who rose up the ranks since starting with the department as an officer in 1997. “I appreciate your vote of confidence and support, and will do my utmost to deserve this honor.”

The Southampton Town Police Department, which is the largest local law enforcement agency on the East End with more than 100 sworn members, patrols communities with more than 58,000 residents from North Haven to Remsenberg.

The Southampton Village Police Department has about 30 sworn members patrolling a 7.4-square-mile municipality that is home to more than 4,500 residents, making it the largest of the six village police departments across the Twin Forks.

The need to replace Skrynecki was sudden, following the late town police chief’s brief illness. Hurteau, on the other hand, has been acting chief for more than a year after the village board terminated the contract of former Chief Thomas Cummings, who had led the department for more than a decade.

While the town board unanimously approved Kiernan’s promotion, the vote to appoint Carter was split, with Mayor Jesse Warren, who questioned the search committee’s process, casting the lone dissenting vote.

Warren expressed concern with the “highly generous” five-year contract — he’ll make $270,000 annually, plus benefits — that other highly qualified candidates were passed up and that Carter still needs to pass a civil service exam in March to qualify to take the position.

“I know he wants to study for the exam, but we really need somebody now,” Warren said, noting that despite the issues, he expects to have a better relationship with Carter than he did with Cummings, who he publicly sparred with for months.