Although Police Commissioners Henry Roy and David Gagnon expressed in two confidential letters their shared belief that no one with prior police experience should sit on the Hooksett Police Commission, they ultimately have no say in the matter.

On June 10, the Hooksett Town Council nominated four potential candidates for the open seat. Nominee Clark Karolian is the only one of the final four with a public safety background. He served on the Manchester police force for years and is now retired.

Of six candidates who applied to fill the position, Richard Sullivan, Joanne McHugh and Stephen L’Heureux were also nominated for further consideration. Town councilors will vote to appoint one of these nominees as the new police commissioner at its next meeting on Wednesday, June 24.

Mary Anne Maksalla, who sought reappointment to the post on the police commission that she has held for the past three years, was not nominated to serve again. John Patti, a Hooksett resident and a current detective sergeant with the Manchester Police Department, was not nominated for further consideration, either.

In related business, the Hooksett Town Council voted against a motion to send the two confidential letters to the state Attorney General’s Office for the investigation of potential conflict of interest violations.

Gagnon and Roy signed two letters on official Hooksett Police Commission stationery detailing their opinion that former or current police officers are not ideal candidates for open police commission seats. Town Councilor Michael Pischetola, a former police officer himself, said he felt the police commissioners acted inappropriately in expressing those opinions.

According to a portion of one letter that Pischetola read aloud in public session, the police commissioners wrote that a person with a police background would not be an asset to the commission and that it has been a longstanding tradition of the council to follow that reasoning.

“I don’t think it’s a detriment,” Pischetola said. “I think it’s probably an asset.”

Other councilors agreed that the letters written by the two police commissioners were inappropriate but the majority ultimately decided that sending a complaint to the Attorney General’s Office would only fan the flames of negative publicity for the town and the Police Commission.

Town Councilor Nancy VanScoy, who voted against the motion to send the letters to the Attorney General, said it is a practice of the Town Council to seek advice from current police commissioners about candidates who apply to fill vacant posts. The council also forwards copies of all applications from candidates applying for a vacant police commission post to current police commissioners.

“We should explore protocol,” VanScoy said. “If we are sending these packets on to the Police Commission, why are we doing that if we aren’t looking for some type of response?”

According to Hooksett Police Chief Stephen Agrafiotis, it is part of a procedure the council adopted in 2004 in an effort to streamline the vetting process for would-be police commissioners and to appoint the most suited person to the position.

“This is the most arduous vetting process for any town board and for good reason,” Agrafiotis said.