Peabody Police Chief Awarded New 4-Year Contract

PEABODY, MA – The City of Peabody announced Friday that Police Chief Tom Griffin will stay on with the department under a new four-year contract. Griffin became police chief in 2014 after 26 years with the Salem Police Department.

The city credits Griffin with strengthening Peabody's community policing programs, and for guiding the department through the city's large-scale road projects and centennial celebrations.

"Chief Griffin has provided outstanding leadership of the Peabody Police Department during a period of tremendous growth and change in our city," said Mayor Ted Bettencourt in a statement announcing the contract. "Major infrastructure projects like the Peabody Square reconfiguration and the new Higgins Middle School tested our public safety capabilities as did large-scale community events like the Centennial Parade and International Festival. Under Chief Griffin’s direction, the men and women of the Peabody Police Department performed superbly and helped keep us safe."

Griffin spent five years as captain and commander of the Criminal Investigations Division. Within his first full year as Peabody's police chief, the department received a three-year accreditation from the Massachusetts Commission on Accreditation. Griffin has graduated from the FBI National Academy, and has a Master's in Criminal Justice from Boston University.

"I am very grateful to Mayor Bettencourt for his continued confidence in me and for the opportunity to continue as chief of such an outstanding department," said Griffin. "I have felt very welcome by everyone in the community and have received outstanding support from the administration, City Council and all of my colleagues within the department."

Image via Peabody Police Department, Holiday Torch Run 2016