BATH — Detective Sgt. Andrew Booth, a member of the Police Department for 17 years, has been promoted to deputy chief, effective Aug. 16.

Detective Sgt. Andrew Booth will become deputy chief of the Bath Police Department Friday, Aug. 16. Contributed

The West Bath resident’s rise in rank follows the Aug. 1 retirement of former Deputy Chief Bob Savary, who concluded a 27-year career to become a command evaluation review officer with the U.S. Navy’s Supervisor of Shipbuilding, Conversion and Repair.

“Andrew brings a lot of experience to the deputy chief position that will serve to continue our mission as a police department,” Police Chief Mike Field said Monday. “I look forward to his contributions in his new position.”

Field had yet to choose a successor for Booth as detective sergeant.

Booth, who is also a lieutenant colonel in the Army National Guard, became a patrolman in February 2002. He was promoted to corporal in 2012, and eventually advanced to detective. He was also a special agent with the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency, and became detective sergeant in 2015.

Being promoted to the department’s second-in-command “feels great,” Booth said Monday, noting that as someone eager to embrace the next challenge, he’s been on “a good track.”

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Booth praised Savary’s work and that of the previous deputy chief, Stan Cielinski, and said he looks forward to the department’s accreditation within the next two years.

“That’s going to be a big goal of ours, to get state-accredited,” he said, noting that the work involves updating policies and reorganizing processes. “It does make us more professional.”

The 41-year-old, who has a wife and two children, said he has been able to maintain his interest in police work for nearly 20 years because he has an analytical mind and an interest in investigations and problem solving .

He joined the Army National Guard while in college 21 years ago, and planned at the time to become a lawyer, Booth said. But as he forged friendships with many people in law enforcement, he said, his career path changed.

“From there, I got really excited about investigating cases, and working cases through to the end, and seeing that finished and prosecuted,” Booth explained. “It’s very interesting work.”

He said he likes to help people, and described his work as “not so much a job as a calling,” where he can “give back to others, and provide some service to the community.”


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