Offering support for Scott Nichols

6 mins read

I want to offer my support for Scott Nichols who is running for Sheriff of franklin County. Scott ran for this position in 2012 simply because he wanted to be Sheriff; Nothing else nothing more.

In his time as Sheriff he has been able to re-open the jail after its seven-year downgrade to a holding facility. He could not have done it without the help of the jail staff, a huge amount of hard work locally, the Bureau of Corrections and the legislature

He has been able to establish a top rate patrol and investigative unit with state-of-the-art equipment and training. He did with the help of the patrol command staff. He did this with his team.

Through a thorough hiring process the Franklin County Sherriff’s office has been able to attract and retain these exceptional professionals. Each of them knows they are held to the highest standards, because that our county deserves the best. As a result, the deputies working in Franklin County are some of the most kind, professional, committed, and thoughtful police officers we could ever hope to have serving our public

Sheriff Nichols ran on several promises during his 2012 campaign and has kept every one! He has expanded patrol without increasing manpower; returned the jail to full time status; brought transparency to the Sheriff’s Office through his weekly reports published in local newspapers and has provided daily updates for the public on arrests and releases through the County website’s jail logs.

He has also implemented several community outreach programs to include:

Citizens Police Academy,
Elder Checks, (He even brings wood in)
Building Checks,
Monthly Firearms Safety Training Courses (which he teaches himself one Saturday each month),
Keeping Your Keys Program for elder citizens,
Rural School Outreach Programs and
All these programs develop a relationship between the Sheriff’s Office and us – the people who elected him to office and which he serves.

Having all of this in the rear-view mirror, he continually looks toward the future – building upon accomplishments of the past.

The future will include a focus upon the jail itself. His administration has been working with the County Commissioners and Board of Visitors to evaluate the needs of the 37-year-old facility. Looking specifically to improve their ability to provide the best possible services for a jail its size.

A Board of Visitors never existed at the jail until Sheriff Nichols found local volunteers to serve as a separate set of eyes to help identify needs for inmates and corrections staff. Statutorily, a Board of Visitors ordinarily only looks at a jail’s mental health services, however Sheriff Nichols expanded that to include all services in the jail. With their help, the administration will continue to identify and remedy any deficiencies, seek financial resources, to include grants, to assist with improvements while always mindful of staying within a limited budget.

His administration has also been working for nearly three years to fund a tenth full-time patrol deputy position. This goal was realized in 2020. State funding will be dedicated specifically to improve the services the Sheriff’s Office provides to the UT’s (Unorganized Townships). This position is fully funded by the State and will not increase our local property taxes. With the imminent addition of this position, they have already begun working with the collective bargaining unit (patrol union) to implement a new patrol schedule which will further improve their coverage for the entire county.

His mission is to look to the future with one point of view: to continue to provide the very best services possible that protect our physical wellbeing, civil rights and property, while ever mindful that budget increases mean property tax increases.

The call for ‘it’s time for a change’, are unfounded. The integrity, experience, and leadership necessary to serve the residents of Franklin County are already in place.

We have an outstanding Sheriff who is serving us well. If it isn’t broke, don’t fix it.

Sheriff Nichols is one of us. He has both an extensive background and experience in law enforcement and has served his Country honorably through the U.S. Army as a Paratrooper, as well as an advisor to the Iraqi National Police; his State as a Maine State Trooper; and his County as both a Police Chief and now Sheriff. We are lucky to have him willing to serve us, we the people of Franklin County. I will be voting for Sheriff Nichols again on November 3 and ask you to join me in supporting our Sheriff by keeping him in office for as long as he is willing to serve us. He is a man ‘Of the People, For the People’.

Sincerely,
Tom saviello
Wilton

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