One Candidate Steps Ahead In Southampton Town Police Chief Search

The search for a new Southampton Town Police chief has been narrowed to four candidates, with one having “jumped ahead of the pack,” according to Southampton Town Supervisor Jay Schneiderman.

Each of the nine candidates who applied for the position was graded on a scale of 1 to 6—6 being the highest—by a search committee headed by Deputy Town Supervisor Frank Zappone. Steven Skrynecki, chief of department for the Nassau County Police, scored an approximate 5.6 compared to the other top three candidates, each of whom scored closer to a 5.

East Hampton Village Police Chief Gerard Larsen Jr., Shelter Island Town Police Chief James Read, Southampton Town Police Captain Lawrence Schurek and Chief Skrynecki were the top scorers out of a total of nine candidates who applied for the position. These four were brought in for interviews directly with the Southampton Town Board in early August.

Chief Skrynecki scored approximately 8 percent higher than the rest of the candidates, which Mr. Schneiderman said stood out to him.

“Each candidate was evaluated based on certain criteria,” Mr. Schneiderman said. “Everyone came in around the same, except for Skrynecki. He kind of jumped ahead of the pack, largely because of the depths of his experience.”

Although it has been speculated that town officials had already selected Chief Skrynecki for the police chief position, Mr. Schneiderman would not say whether an official offer has been extended.

Chief Skrynecki, 64, has been a member of the Nassau County Police Department for 42 years, supervises more than 3,000 employees and had an $815.7 million budget for 2015, according to county budget review documents. Southampton Town has a 2016 police budget of a little more than $22 million.

According to Mr. Schneiderman, Chief Skrynecki has a home in Sag Harbor and has vacationed there for many years.

Councilwoman Christine Scalera suggested hiring decisions aren't official, saying the Town Board is still continuing discussions about the four candidates and hopes a selection will be made soon. “I do have a preference of promoting from within, but there are other things to be considered,” she said. “Our ultimate goal is to select someone that has unanimous board support.”

Mr. Schneiderman said he expects a decision to be announced as soon as next week—at the latest by mid-September.

Chief Larsen said he is still very interested in the position but has not heard anything official from Town Hall. Chief Read would not confirm or deny that he had applied for the job, but said he believed “there are some excellent choices up there, which is ultimately up to the Town Board.”

Chief Skrynecki declined to comment. Captain Schurek could not be reached for comment.

The new chief will replace retiring Police Chief Robert Pearce, who joined the department in 1981 and is slated to retire September 30.