Chris Outten who had been serving as interim chief has been named as the new permanent chief of police for Northfield. Photo by Bill Croney, The Northfield News Northfield’s new Police Chief, Chris Outten is no stranger to the community.

For the past year and a half he has served in the Northfield Police Department at the rank of sergeant and then was named acting chief in June after Chief Shaw resigned.

The town sought applications from within and outside of the department in an effort to find a new chief. Two applications were received from outside but both were withdrawn according to information received from the Selectboard.

Town Manager Nanci Allard then acted to name Chief Outten as the new permanent chief.

Chief Outten brings a lot of police experience to his new appointment. He has been involved in police work for eighteen years and served in the U.S. Navy submarine service for three years prior to becoming a policeman. The majority of his police work has been out of state. “Mostly in Maryland. It was a mix of large cities and small towns and in several specialized units. I spent three years in narcotics then worked in the Criminal Investigation Division and also was involved in warrant fugitive work,” Acting Chief Outten said.

He Graduated from the Maryland Police academy in 1992 and had to undergo training at the Vermont Police Academy before he could be certified in the Green Mountain State. He discovered that all states do not have the same laws when it comes to the authority of the police.

He said that he and his wife came to Vermont for the quality of life. “We had a connection to the state because my wife has family in Barre and Rutland. We have two children, ages eight and ten and we thought it would be a great place to raise kids. The Chief and his family currently reside in Williston.

Chief Outten has some ideas on what he would like to do within the department. “We are nowhere near the National average of 2.5 officers per 1000 residents,” he said.

“I would like to increase manpower. Add an officer or two. I pay taxes like everybody else and no one wants more taxes but we are presently a five- man department using part timers to fill in schedules. I’d like to see an officer or two added for officer safety issues. I don’t want to see an officer injured because of money.

It relates to safety issues relating to fatigue or scheduling. The equipment in this department is great. Chief Shaw did a great job in equipping the officers.”

The Chief said he has enjoyed his time in Northfield. “I like the town. I’ve met a lot of nice people here. Vermont has some cultural differences from Maryland but Vermont has some good things to offer,” Chief Outten said.