Jim Bell, who previously led departments in Valley Township and Cheyney University, got the nod
By Jamie Richard, Staff Writer, The Times
COATESVILLE – City council named former Valley Township and Cheyney University police chief Jim Bell as acting police chief at its Monday meeting.
The decision to appoint Bell, 70, was an addition to the agenda and was a unanimous 5-0 decision; council president Ed Simpson and councilman Jeffrey LoPrinzi were absent from the meeting. Prior to Bell’s appointment, Sgt. James Audette served as acting officer in charge of the department.
According to council vice president Joseph Hamrick, Bell was interviewed with other candidates for the part-time position in July. Hamrick went on to state that Bell has also expressed interest in the full-time chief position.
“He’s very qualified…he was a law enforcement officer in West Chester and comes with a lot of good recommendations,” said Hamrick.
At the last council meeting, the council removed the motion to appoint former Chester County District Attorney Joseph Carroll as the temporary interim safety officer. Councilwoman C. Arvilla Hunt previously stated Carroll lacked the necessary qualifications to be police chief, including a lack of chief experience and an ACT 120 clearance. According to Hamrick, Bell does have his ACT 120 clearance, but is also lacking the proper police chief experience. While Bell has served as a police chief in the past, he does not meet the requirement of having been chief of a municipality the size of Coatesville or larger.
City Manager Kirby Hudson stated that a search committee has been formed to in order to find and interview applicants for the full-time chief position. According to Hudson, Bell’s appointment was an unexpected “new twist” added by the council. Hudson stated that he hadn’t expected the hire prior to Monday’s executive session, but felt optimistic about the search committee.
“There are nine people made up of law enforcement and also community organizations. I think it’s a really good culmination of people,” said Hudson.
Hudson was unwilling to specifically divulge the names of the members without their consent, but Hamrick confirmed that William Lambert, president of Coatesville chapter of the NAACP, and Rev. Randy Williams of the Coatesville Tabernacle Baptist Church are on the committee. Hamrick will serve as the council’s sole representative on the committee. The committee will hold its first meeting on Friday.
The city council will hold its next meeting Aug. 27.
