After dealing with turnover in the position over the past 18 months, Hancock County Sheriff Scott Kane has named a new chief deputy to oversee the patrol division of his department.
William Birch, who served as chief deputy under Penobscot County Sheriff Troy Morton from 2017 until 2021, started his first day as Hancock County’s chief deputy on Monday, according to Kane.
Birch has more than 30 years experience in law enforcement, including 17 as a patrol sergeant for Penobscot County, and is trained as a drone pilot, Kane said.
“He will assist with use of our new drone for accident reconstruction, searches, etc.,” Kane said. “We are excited to have him join us.”
The state has given drones to certain law enforcement departments that often respond to crashes that cause traffic jams, Kane told county commissioners last week. Bad crashes on route 1A between Ellsworth and Bangor, as well as on Mount Desert Island, are known to cause serious delays.
The drone and accompanying software that the Maine Department of Transportation has given the sheriff’s department, at no charge, together are estimated to cost roughly $50,000, Kane said.
“The incoming chief is a drone pilot,” he said. “You have to register this with the FAA and do all of those kinds of things. It’s going to be a great addition for us.”
The issue of filling the chief deputy position has been fraught since last spring, when Corey Bagley went on leave from it. A meeting last June boiled over into an argument when Commissioner Bill Clark, a previous sheriff, accused Kane of pushing Bagley out so that he could re-hire another of the position’s former occupants, his brother Patrick Kane.
Scott Kane denied the allegation, saying that Bagley was voluntarily retiring. Bagley now works as an Ellsworth police detective.
Patrick Kane, who now works for a property management and development company, declined the position after commissioners offered him only part-time wages and no benefits.
Sheriff Kane then appointed Deputy Jon Mahon, a longtime officer whose past appointments included working as a lieutenant for the Maine State Police.
Mahon agreed in September to take on the chief deputy role on a short-term basis and, after a few months, returned to his regular deputy position because the department was short-handed, according to the sheriff. Mahon’s primary role for the department is providing security at the county’s airport in Trenton.
