Mayor Names Interim Police Chief

Capt. Charles Femino, a 29-year veteran of the Somerville Police Department, has been named the city's interim acting chief of police, according to an announcement from Somerville Mayor Joseph Curtatone's office.

Femino will take over duties as the city's top cop on Dec. 1, when the current chief, Thomas Pasquarello, steps down. Pasquarello announced Monday he was resigning in order to provide around-the-clock care to a family member.

According to the announcement, Femino will serve as Somerville's police chief while a selection committee works to find a new permanent head of the department, a process that "will likely take several months," according to a statement from Curtatone.

As interim acting chief of police, Femino will not be eligible to apply for the permanent position, the announcement says.

One contender for the permanent position could be Deputy Chief of Police Michael Cabral, who served as acting chief in 2010 and was a finalist in the search process that ultimately selected Pasquarello.

Femino currently serves as chief of detectives, a role he's filled since 2005, with a short break in 2010, when he was deputy chief of police.

He's been on the force since 1984, and among other things he has a law degree from New England School of Law, a master's degree in education from Northeastern and a bachelor's degree from Northeastern.

The announcement says the mayor will soon convene a police chief selection committee—a process that's called for in the city charter and city ordinance.

The committee will include the city's director of personnel, a member of the Board of Aldermen, the director of the city's multicultural affairs commission, two members of the general public named by the mayor, two members of the general public named by the president of the Board of Aldermen, and two sworn officers of the Somerville Police Department.

It will choose three to five finalists, who will take part in public interviews, the announcement says.