Courtesy of

Hanson Police

    It was quite a chase early Thursday morning, May 11, as police from Hanson, Pembroke, Hanover, Whitman, Carver, Halifax and Plympton, as well as the Plymouth County Sheriffs finally brought Daniel Egan, 36, of Plymouth, into custody.

    At 1 a.m. Hanson police encountered a 2010 Chevy Malibu heading north on Route 58 at a high rate of speed.  When it failed to stop at the stop sign a Indian Head and Liberty streets, Hanson officers attempted to stop the vehicle which fled north, turning off the vehicle’s lights.

    The Malibu fled to East Washington St., to an area near the Hanover/Pembroke town line.  Officers pursued the vehicle back into Hanson Center, through Winter Street, back onto Route 58, traveling south.

    The Malibu struck a cruiser and attempted to force it off the road in the area of Latham Street.  The cruiser suffered minor damage.  Officers deployed tire deflation deices in the area of Route 58 and 106 causing the vehicle to eventually stop on Route 58 in Halifax.

    Egan fled the scene into a wooded area. Officers attempted to take him into custody but he managed to escape. Eagan then got into and fled in a marked police cruiser.

    Officers from Hanson, Halifax, and Pembroke attempted to stop Eagan as he fled in the cruiser on Route 58 south. Plympton police officers deployed tire deflation devices on Route 58 and disabled the cruiser.

    At approximately 1:15 a.m. the cruiser was stopped at the Plympton/Carver line in front of Tractor Supply. Eagan refused to come out of the vehicle which led to a standoff that lasted approximately 20 minutes.

    Efforts to convince Egan to exit the vehicle were unsuccessful. Officers used bean bag rounds to shoot out the windows of the cruiser. Mr. Egan eventually exited the vehicle and again refused commands to surrender. A K9 from the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Office was used to subdue Mr. Egan. He was transported to the Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Plymouth in the custody of the Hanson Police by Plympton Fire. He suffered an injury to his hand.  He was later transferred to Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital in Boston.

    Egan is being charged with operating to endanger, failure to stop for a police officer, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident, assault and battery, larceny of a motor vehicle, and numerous other motor vehicle violations. Bail has been set at $25,000.

    Police Officers and Sheriff’s Deputies on scene showed great restraint and patience during this entire incident, according to Hanson police.

    HPD would like to thank the Whitman, Hanover, Pembroke, Carver, and Plympton Police as well as the Plymouth County Sheriff’s Department for their assistance during this incident.

Townspeople in Halifax will consider 50 articles at Monday night’s Annual Town Meeting, with various issues, ranging from Marijuana Establishments zoning, Marijuana tax, to adding a Foreclosed Properties by-law.

Article 48 asks if the town will amend the Code of the Town of Halifax, Chapter 167 (Zoning) to define marijuana establishments as a marijuana cultivator, marijuana testing facility, marijuana product manufacturer, marijuana retailer or any other type of licensed marijuana-related business, as is defined by Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 94H.

This article would allow marijuana establishments by special permit in the Industrial District and will not be allowed within 500 linear feet of any school or child care facility or where children generally congregate, or any other marijuana establishment or any business licensed to pour alcoholic beverages.  The distance will be measured by direct calculation of a straight line from the nearest property line of a facility to the nearest property line of the marijuana establishment.

The hours of operation may not include any time between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m.

Any permit applied for and/or issued for a Marijuana Establishment must  comply with all state laws and regulations concerning Marijuana Establishments.

Article 49 asks to allow the town to tax each sale of marijuana at an amount not more than 2%.

Article 50 would amend the Code of the Town of Halifax by requiring the registration and maintenance of foreclosed properties, and the security of foreclosed properties, to help prevent blighted and unsecured properties.  The article would require that owners must register the property with the Halifax Building Commissioner and if the owner is out-of-state it must appoint an agent within Massachusetts to act in the owner’s stead.

In addition to the usual finances of the town, its employee salaries and department expenses, the town will also be asked to fund

• $205,000 for a large dump truck for the Highway Department

• $50,000 for a security system and other items for the Halifax Elementary School

• $2,000,000 for renovations and addition to Pope’s Tavern Senior Center

• $70,000 for architectural and building plans for repairs to Pope’s Tavern

• $49,000 to purchase and equip a new service truck for the Water Dept.

• $80,000 to purchase and equip two new marked police vehicles

• $16,000 to purchase and equip two new ATVs to be used for patrol

• $5,000 to purchase and maintain communications equipment for the Fire Dept.

• $10,000 for new turnout gear for Fire Dept. personnel

• $280,000 to purchase and equip an ambulance for the Fire Dept.

• $27,145 to replace apparatus bay door openers at the Fire Station

• $9,000 to update the phone system at the Halifax Fire Station

• $10,000 to purchase IV pumps for the Halifax Fire Department

• $12,500 to repair chimneys at the Museum of Halifax, Old School House, Blacksmith’s Shop, and Pope’s Tavern

• $7,000 to replace light fixtures at the Town Hall with LED fixtures and wiring over the next two years.

• $9,500 to replace two furnaces as part of completing phase 2 of the furnace replacement at the Town Hall

• $7,200 to replace the Recycling Center’s two rear garage doors with new hardware motors, one section of panel with glass windows, and the other three sections with insulated solid panels

• $12.000 for the Assessors’ Triennial Revaluation Account

• $7,500 for additional hours for the Conservation Commission Secretary for wetlands protection work

• $5,000 for improvements to the town’s boat ramp

• $6,500 to refurbish the doors and replace the lock system at the Halifax Town Hall

• $28,100 for new computer servers at the Halifax Town Hll

• $3,500 to support South Coastal Counties Legal Services, Inc.’s free legal services to elders, low-income families and their children

• $3,500 to support South Shore Women’s Resource Center for domestic violence intervention and prevention services

• $70,000 for the second year principal payment of the water tower painting and repair debt and $5,989 for the second year of interest on the same debt

Town meeting warrant will also be asked to

• vote to accept  Bourne Drive and Danson Road

• vote to accept Heron Road

• vote to revise the listing of delinquent taxpayers

• vote to amend the Streets and Sidewalks section of the Code of the Town.

Plympton Selectmen met Monday, April 24, with the Finance Committee to hear a presentation from Dick Kobayashi from the Collins Center. The Board is considering using the Collins Center’s services to assist in hiring a town administrator.

The UMASS Boston based Collin’s Center was established by the state legislature in July, 2008, to focus on improving public management, particularly at the state and local level. The Collins Center offers a variety of services, including staffing.

Kobayashi began by highlighting the experience of the staff at the Collins Center, saying that although it’s part of UMASS Boston, all of the people that work at the Center have worked in towns. Kobayashi says, “No students and no academics are used.”

Kobayashi then went through the process the Collins Center uses to assist filling public roles. He said they start by interviewing members of the Board of Selectmen in a one-on-one setting. They also will interview members of the community who are active in the town, as identified by the Board.

According to Kobayashi, the purpose of these individual interviews is to determine the values of the town and what they are looking for in a candidate.

Selectmen then set up a screening committee to work closely with the Collins Group to examine the pool of candidates. This committee will screen and narrow down the list of potential candidates to about ten to twelve members.

These final candidates will be brought before the board for interviews during open session, as required by Massachusetts General Law.  Kobayashi told the board, “It’s important the committee represents the board and town’s values.”

Members of the Board of Selectmen and the Finance Committee had several questions for Kobayashi. Selectmen Clerk John Traynor asked how big these screening committees typical are. According to Kobayashi, they usually consist of five to seven members.

FinCom members asked where the job postings would be placed. Kobayashi answered the advertisements will be placed online with the Massachusetts Municipal Association (MMA) and International City Management. Brochures would also be posted with the ads and in print.

Finance Committee member Susan Ossoff questioned the need for the brochure if the advertisements are placed online. She described Plympton as a frugal town and the cost of putting the brochures into print, she was unsure there was value there if applicants are coming from online databases.

Kobayashi says that the brochures tell the story of the town and it may be a good idea to have some around the town hall. He did say that brochures could potentially just be put on the online profile and not printed, but they typically print them.

The cost of service is a $14,000 fee from the Collins Center. This however does not include the university’s fee, and the costs of advertising and travel. The total cost could be north of $17,000 if the town decides to pursue this option.

Review of Town

Meeting Warrant

Article 29 was removed from the Town Meeting Warrant. This article would have limited the size of temporary signs. In particular, political signs would have been affected if passed. The article was removed due to it potentially being unconstitutional by violating the First Amendment.

An article to provide dental insurance for town employees was also dropped from the warrant. Board of Selectmen Chair Colleen Thompson says the cost were higher than anticipated due to a miscommunication.

One last article was removed because of a legal technicality. What was to be Article 10 reads, “To see if the Town will vote to accept provisions of M.G.L. Chapter 258 section 13 which provides that the town shall indemnify and save harmless municipal officers, elected or appointed, from personal loss and expense including reasonable legal fees and costs, if any, in an amount not to exceed one million dollars, arising out of any claim, demand, suitor judgement by reason of any act or omission except an intentional violation of civil rights of any person under any law, if the official at the time of such act or omission was acting within the scope of his official duties or employment or take any other action relative thereto.”

The Board of Selectmen learned via legal counsel that this type of action has to go forth as a ballot question rather than an article at Town Meeting. The Board still wants to see this voted on, it just cannot legally be done at Town Meeting.

Selectmen closed the Special Town Meeting Warrant. Most of the details were hammered out previously, so Monday night’s meeting was mainly a procedural discussion, with Selectmen deciding who will speak and move each the articles at Town Meeting.

Town Meeting Notes from the Financial Committee

The Finance Committee plans to reduce the equipment request from the Fire Department by $12,000. FinCom Vice Chairman Eric Hart said there was confusion about the need for several of the equipment requests from the FD, so he discussed them with the department.

One request was for new pagers which Hart says are failing. He agreed with Chief Warren Borsari and his Fire Department that this is a safety issue and this needs to be addressed.

Some of the disconnect was on the cost of uniforms and turnout gear, which Hart said was also in their budget line and for equipment thatcould fail.

Hart said, “We don’t want to budget for anticipatory breakage.” If emergencies come up, the Fire Department can come to the FinCom to request reserve funds.

Other News

Board of Selectmen Chair Colleen Thompson made a request to improve the identification of Area 58 broadcasts of meetings at the Plympton Town House. The Board is asking Area 58 to either take old meetings off the air or time stamping them to avoid confusion.

Thompson said they are broadcasting old meetings on television without time stamps, and there’s nothing to tell a town citizen that itisn’t current news. This is already being done for televised school committee meetings.

The next Board of Selectmen meeting will take place on Monday, May 1, 2017.

Open session will start at 6p.m.