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South Bloomfield council adopts emergency police staffing ordinances and swears in new patrol lieutenant
Summary
The Village of South Bloomfield adopted emergency ordinances to create a police staffing matrix and new lieutenant positions and approved the hiring of Sara Hempstead as a full‑time patrol lieutenant, who was sworn in at the Nov. 18 council meeting.
South Bloomfield's council on Nov. 18 adopted a set of emergency measures to reshape police staffing and pay and approved the hiring of Sara Hempstead as a full‑time patrol lieutenant.
The council passed Ordinance 2024‑14, which establishes a police staffing matrix and pay schedule. Tom Ramsay, a council member, moved for first reading and later moved to waive the second and third readings and adopt the ordinance as an emergency; the motion carried after a roll‑call vote in which Ken Everts and Dena Cobb voted no and the other members voted yes. During the meeting resident Shawna Huston asked what the term "staffing matrix" meant; Ramsay said it refers to "the structure of positions within the department."
Council also approved Ordinances 2024‑15 and 2024‑16 to create a full‑time police lieutenant position and a part‑time administrative lieutenant position, respectively. Both ordinances were approved on first reading and immediately adopted as emergencies by recorded votes.
Separately, the council approved Resolution 2024‑18 to hire Sara Hempstead as a full‑time patrol lieutenant. Lisa McDorman moved the resolution, Woody Blanton seconded, and the resolution passed with Ken Everts recorded as an abstention. Mayor Aaron Thomas read a brief biography of Hempstead's qualifications and administered the oath of office at the meeting.
Mayor Thomas and council members framed the measures as a response to rising call volume and administrative workload in the police department. Police Chief Sgt. Michael Maynard explained that call volume and paperwork have increased and said the administrative lieutenant position "will allow the Administrative Lieutenant to handle and review all paperwork." Maynard also reported ongoing training and set a Dec. 9 deadline for officers to complete required CPTs.
The council took the ordinances under emergency procedures so staffing changes and the hire could take effect promptly. The next procedural steps noted at the meeting were implementation by village administration and departmental staffing adjustments; no additional council votes on these specific ordinances were scheduled at the close of the meeting.
