Stratham Hires Next Police Chief

Salisbury Lieutenant Anthony King to begin on April 22nd

The Stratham Select Board has announced Anthony King has been selected to become the Town’s next Chief of Police. King, who currently serves as the Executive Officer Lieutenant in the Salisbury Police Department, will begin his service on April 22, 2019.

Stratham Select Board Chair Michael Houghton said "Chief King has many years of experience, outstanding training credentials and management experience as well as a reputation for being hardworking and highly-respected; he will make a great Police Chief for our community. His embrace of true community policing approach and interest in service to Stratham were just two of the factors leading to his selection.”

Select Board Member Joe Lovejoy described the four-month search process initiated following the retirement of Chief John Scippa, who served the community for nine years. It included the development of a candidate profile with input from the community as well as an interview process which included resident representatives along with the three Select Board members and Town Administrator.

Select Board Member Allison Knab applauded Chief King’s deep understanding of the schools’ needs and functions, “he is going to be a great partner for the parents and educators in Stratham and appreciates the necessity of having a close working relationship with the school administration and parents”.

"Chief King also serves as a coach and mentor, his broad perspective on service to a community makes him a great fit for Stratham in particular.” said Board Chair Houghton.

King joined the Salisbury, MA Police Department as a Special Police Officer in 1990 and became a Reserve Police Officer in 1994. During this time, he also worked as a full-time EMT-Paramedic and a Reserve Police Officer in the Town of Georgetown, MA. He became a full-time Patrolman in 1997, promoted to the rank of Patrol Sergeant in January of 2007 and Detective Sergeant in charge of the Criminal Investigation Division in 2010. Since 2004, he has served as Lieutenant and second in charge of agency consisting of (50) sworn and non-sworn employees. As Executive Officer, he oversaw all operations of the agency and served as Accreditation Manager leading to Massachusetts State Certification and Accreditation for the first time in department history. He has received the FBI LEEDA (Law Enforcement Executive Development Association) Trilogy Award for successfully completing the Supervisory Leadership, Command Leadership and Executive Leadership curriculums.

King lives in Salisbury, Massachusetts with his wife and has three grown children and grandchildren.