The town of Ledyard has officially sworn in it's first every police chief.
Chief John Rich was sworn in at Ledyard High School's auditorium. He took the stage with his fellow police officers, the mayor, and other local and state leaders.
Chief Rich was formally pinned in front of hundreds of people, including several law enforcement agencies.
“It’s a big day for the town; it’s a big day for the men and women of the Ledyard Police Department so I'm excited for the opportunity and I'm excited for them,” said Chief Rich, who has been in Connecticut law enforcement for nearly 28 years.
Chief Rich served as the town’s residential state trooper between 2005 and 2009 and most recently served as the commander of the Madison Police Department.
The day marked a historic moment for the town, as well. The appointment of its new police chief begins a new establishment of the town's first independent police department.
"It definitely increases morale of the department, but we already had a very professional police department," said Mayor Michael Finkelstein. "What this does is as mayor, for myself, I have a direct person that is simply in charge."
Finkelstein said it costs about the same to have a residential state trooper as it would to have a police chief (approximately $190,000).
Now that the town has a chief, that means the police department will be able to access certain grants.
