Questions about TASER use met with silence by Sanbornton selectmen and police chief

A member of the Board of Selectmen said he is unhappy that Tilton resident Dennis Huckins was shot with an electric stun gun by a town police officer on January 20. Prevented by Chairman Andrew Livernois from speaking about the incident when the subject was raised at last night's Selectboard meeting, Steve Ober later indicated he has told Police Chief Mark Barton that the officer should have known who Huckins was and handled the situation more appropriately.

The local police have charged Huckins, 25, with resisting arrest. He has entered a not guilty plea and his Franklin District Court trial has been scheduled for April 13.

Livernois initially responded to the comments of former selectman Peter Dascoulias’ question about who is investigating the incident, saying, “The board would have to defer to the chief of police on this matter.” During his report to the selectmen later in the meeting, Barton refused to respond to Dascoulias’ question on the grounds that the Huckins matter was an open case that he could not speak about.

Dascoulias’ initially spoke to the subject during the time set aside for public comment. He asked the board who was doing the investigation of the Taser incident, during which Huckins’ right elbow was reportedly broken. He also asked the selectmen if they were familiar with the Sanbornton department’s policy governing the use of the electronic stun guns (the Thomas A. Swift Electric Rifle - TASER) by its officers. Further, he said the citizens of Sanbornton deserved to know that their police officers were using the utmost care when in using the Taser or any other kind of weapon.

Livernois reminded Dascoulias that, “should this incident turn into a personnel matter, we would not be having this conversation in public session. Further, internal affairs investigations are supposed to be handled by the police chief. This is a different ‘kettle of fish’ than a matter involving an employee of the highway department, for example.”

Ober tried to interject his view of the incident and its aftermath several times during the public comment portion of the meeting and the discussion with Chief Barton, only to be cut off by Livernois.

Following the meeting, however, Ober told The Daily Sun that he had met with the police chief to express his unhappiness with the way the Sanbornton officer handled the January 20 incident that apparently started with a routine traffic stop that initially only involved some friends of Huckins. “Dennis Huckins is a good friend of mine,” Ober said. “Everybody in town knows Dennis, and I felt that the officer should have known who he was. I told the chief that the officer should have let Dennis go, impounded his truck, and then gone to his house to cite him with a violation.”

“Chief Barton was very frank with me,” Ober continued. “He told me the officer could not let Dennis leave the scene of the incident because he thought the young man was impaired.”

(Huckins has not been charged with any impairment-related offense.)

“A lot of people from all over town have talked about this. It just wasn’t handled right. We are a small town, and the officers should make more of an effort to get to know the people who live here a little better,” Ober concluded.

In other action the three members of the board agreed with Chief Barton, who was reporting on behalf of his and the highway department, that the winter and “mud season” conditions of Huse Road might justify making the road one-way during those times of the year. During the discussion, which was provoked by a truck attempting to use the narrow dirt road getting stuck, the selectmen agreed to explore the alternatives, including closing the road, which runs from Woodman Road and Lower Bay Road in the Winnisquam section of town, during the times of the year when the road is almost impassible.

Following a non-public meeting, the chair announced that the board had reached agreement with Judith Rich with respect to the abatement of interest, costs, and taxes in the amount of $3,272.45 on two of the five parcels she owns in town. Rich also agreed to pay $1,505.00 on overdue taxes. She tendered that amount at the meeting.