By Dylan Marsh
EAGLE TIMES STAFF
CLAREMONT — The city of Claremont has hired Brent Wilmot as its new Chief of Police.
Wilmot, a Claremont resident, has been a police officer for the last 18 years. Much of that time was spent working for the Claremont Police Department, where he worked from 2005 until 2020. Wilmont had said he hadn’t considered the thought of becoming a Chief but eventually saw it as a goal. Wilmont was hired as the Chief of Police for the town of Newport in 2020, a position he currently holds.
“There’s nothing like being the guy at the top. Getting that experience was very important,” said Wilmot of the experience he gained in Newport.
Chief Wilmot is looking forward to taking the reins in his hometown of Claremont. “I want to continue moving the department along with its accreditation and professionalism. I hope to continue providing interesting opportunities for employees. I plan to have my ear to the ground and be responsive to the community. I’m particularly aware of the nuances and quirks of the city and I think that it will serve well with the position,” he said.
The current Chief, Mark Chase, announced his retirement in May of this year. Chase had been promoted from Captain to Chief in 2017 after serving on the Claremont Police Department on-and-off since 1990.
The position for Chief was posted in May. The role is a senior management-level professional position that is responsible for administering, and managing, the city’s Police Department and Communications Center. Thi includes the planning, directing, controlling, coordinating, and staffing of all activities for the department in order to preserve the peace, protect persons, and enforce the law, as posted in the job description.
Mark Chase began his law enforcement career while attending Stevens High School. Chase joined the cadet program in 1984, where he stayed until the time he was around 21-years-old.
“The cadet program really set me on my path. I had graduated highschool and wasn’t college bound. I knew I wanted to do something in the police field,” said Chase.
Chase was then hired by the Lebanon Police Department as a communication specialist in 1987. He continued to be a dispatcher until being hired as a patrolman at the CPD in 1990.
The following year, Claremont was met with the task of lowering the budget, and as a result, Chase found himself back in Lebanon after the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center had been built and Lebanon was looking for six new officers.
In 1994, Chase found himself missing the CPD and working in his hometown. This is when Mike Prazzo, the Chief at the time, hired him back. Chase worked his way up to Sargent, and eventually Lieutenant running the Criminal Division. Issues of truthfulness from higher up staff discouraged Chase from staying in Claremont and he once again found himself in Lebanon.
“There were issues with people not telling the Council entirely accurate things and that wasn’t something I wanted to be around so I had to leave,” Chase said of the dishonesty.
Eventually Alex Scott, a former county attorney, became the Chief of Police for Claremont and encouraged Chase to return to the CPD in 2004. Chase would stay on, and when Chief Scott retired in 2017, Chase was promoted.
“Claremont is where my heart is, I raised my children here, we live here. I wanted to be here in Claremont,” said Chase.
As for retirement Chase does not currently have any plans aside from taking time for himself and his family.
“You know it’s been almost 33 years working as a police officer. I had talked about staying until 2024, but personal things came up that made me reflect on what I was doing and should be doing. I decided at this time that it’s best for me and my family. I turned 54 in April and I sat down with my wife and two daughters and realized I needed to do what was best for Mark. I decided to step away and concentrate on Mark,” said Chase on his retirement plans.
Every full-time officer is hired by Claremont’s Police Commision, a civilian oversight board. The commission comprises three board seats appointed by City Council. The current members are John Hall, Scott Kirkpatrick, and Joel Tremblay. They are also responsible for guiding the police department and making policy decisions.
“We are very fortunate to have a civilian oversight board in Claremont. I am a real strong supporter and I think that cops shouldn’t be running cops. We in law enforcement get very “copish” and sometimes it’s okay to have someone from the outside looking at it and talking it through,” Chase said of the Police Commision.
Before Chief Wilmot is officially hired on as the new Chief of Police, he is required to go through the standard background checks. This includes a background investigation, normal medical screening, and drug screening.
“I’m sure this won’t be an issue, but we’re not in the business of putting the cart before the horse,” said Chase.
In Newport, hiring for the new Chief of Police will be done by the Town Manager, currently Hunter Rieseberg. At the time of publication, there has not been an announcement for candidates.
Wilmot says that he will miss working in Newport and has a lot of positive feelings about the community. “Newport is an amazing community and I love the people here. Leaving here has nothing to do with Newport and more that I just want to be in the town that I live in. I’ve made some great relationships and I’m going to miss being here.”
At this time there has not been an official start date for Wilmot, nor has he given an end date for Newport. Chief Mark Chase’s last day with the Claremont Police Depart will be July 29th.
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