In Lieutenant McGuire, East Hampton's Loss Is Sag Harbor's Gain

After nearly 20 years with the East Hampton Town Police Department, Lt. Austin McGuire, known A.J., is leaving for a new position as Sag Harbor Village’s next police chief. Starting in January, Lieutenant McGuire will take over from Chief Tom Fabiano, who announced his retirement in September.

It’s a move that required the blessing of the lieutenant’s current employer, the Town of East Hampton. While he is the latest in a string of experienced senior officers to leave the Town Police Department, Supervisor Larry Cantwell said he did not want to stand in the lieutenant’s way, even though transferring officers is not something he agrees with usually. “Because he’s going to be appointed chief, we felt it was appropriate to consider approving a lateral transfer,” he Tuesday. The opportunity to become a chief is a rare one, he said. 

“We’ll miss A.J. We’re sorry to see him leave. He’s an outstanding police officer and person,” Supervisor Cantwell said. “We’re grateful for everything [he] has done for our police department.”

“I understand I owe, I owe very big there. It’s been explained,” Mayor Sandra Schroeder said, and she thanked the town for its cooperation. She described the lieutenant as “quite the go-getter,” and said he would be a good leader and someone the other officers would admire and respect. She is also glad to have found a replacement who will stay in the position long-term. At 44, Lieutenant McGuire said he plans to stick around. 

East Hampton Town Police Chief Michael Sarlo said he wishes his lieutenant the best of luck, but admitted his department was not prepared for such a loss. “We are losing a very professional, well-trained, and respected member of our senior supervisory staff,” he said on Friday morning. “He will be difficult to replace at this time, as we had not planned for his departure prior to his 20-year commitment.”

Lieutenant McGuire is the third lieutenant to leave the town department in less than a year. The previous two were both Montauk precinct commanders: Lt. Chris Hatch retired in March after 22 years on the job, and Lt. Thomas Grenci, a 28-year member of the department, retired in October. Several other senior officers have retired in recent years, and the department does not have any sergeants eligible to make lieutenant until February of 2017, Chief Sarlo said. A new Montauk precinct commander has not been named. “All of our sergeants either didn’t have the mandatory two years in rank prior to the last exam, were recently promoted, or didn’t take/pass the last test,” he said, adding he will have to redistribute the administrative duties. It’s “going to be a big challenge,” he said.

Supervisor Cantwell said he is not concerned. “I have enough confidence in Chief Sarlo to know he is going to find a way to make this work,” he said. “I have enough confidence in the officers we have that they will do an outstanding job,” he said, adding that it will give “an opportunity for others to demonstrate their leadership ability, as well.”

The lieutenant is initially being transferred to Sag Harbor in the same rank. The village board met on Tuesday morning and unanimously approved appointing him lieutenant in its police force at an annual salary of $130,159. After one pay period, when Chief Fabiano leaves in January, the board will make him the provisional chief, the mayor explained. Chief Fabiano will be on a one-year terminal leave due to unused vacation and sick time. When that has concluded and Lieutenant McGuire has passed the Civil Service exam, which is to be given in March, he will be made chief. 

The town ultimately has to approve Lieutenant McGuire’s transfer, which Mr. Cantwell said he and the town board have agreed to do in the coming weeks. The lateral transfer, in part, allowed the village to offer a promotional exam to an officer familiar with Sag Harbor, instead of a competitive exam, which would open the position to the entire county. 

Mr. McGuire has strong ties to the Sag Harbor community. He lives in Noyac with his wife, Sarah McGuire, a teacher at the Southampton Intermediate School, and their daughters, Lillian, 11, and Caroline, 9, both of whom attend school in Sag Harbor. He has been a volunteer with the Sag Harbor Fire Department for 13 years. 

While his wife, the former Sarah Churchill, grew up in Sag Harbor, he is a native of Roslyn Harbor in Nassau County. When he was 16, his family moved to East Hartford, Conn., where he graduated from Glastonbury High School. He spent summers in East Hampton since he was a child, as his mother, Mary Ellen McGuire’s, family had a house here since the 1950s. He settled in East Hampton after graduating from Central Connecticut State University in 1994. 

While his policing career with the town spans two decades, he has worked for the Town of East Hampton for almost 30 years, starting when he was 15 years old, picking up trash and cutting grass as summer help in the Parks Department. He spent 10 seasons as a town lifeguard, including the summer he first worked as a police officer in Sag Harbor. He would man the beach by day, and patrol by night, he said. “They raised me pretty much,” Lieutenant McGuire said of the town. 

Leaving is bittersweet, Lieutenant McGuire said. “It was a very difficult decision. As much as I wanted to be police chief in Sag Harbor, leaving the place I’ve worked and enjoyed working for 18 years is very difficult,” he said. Ultimately, he felt “all of my education and experience has led up to this,” he said. “I just think that I was ready to make that next step.” 

Lieutenant McGuire’s career has come full circle, as he worked part-time in Sag Harbor early in his career, before East Hampton hired him full-time in October 1997. He was a police officer for six and a half years before being promoted to detective. Four years later, he became a patrol sergeant, a position he held for four years, before being made a lieutenant three and a half years ago. Last year, he graduated from the Federal Bureau of Investigations Academy, a tremendous experience, he said. He also leads the police dive team and is a former member of the emergency services unit.

He said he is looking forward to working with the Sag Harbor officers, many of whom he has worked with in various capacities over the course of his career. He hopes to bring his experience in conducting investigations to the village and to promote training. There will be some adjustment, he said, to working for an agency that polices 75 square miles versus the 2 in Sag Harbor, and he plans to focus quite a bit on interaction with the community.

His current bosses said there is no doubt he will flourish in his new position. “Sag Harbor is getting a good communicator, someone who understands the importance of community policing and professionalism,” Chief Sarlo said.

Lieutenant McGuire’s last day in East Hampton will be Dec. 31, and he will start his job in Sag Harbor the next day. That will allow for some transition time before Chief Fabiano’s departure, Mayor Schroeder said. Chief Fabiano, who has led the department since 2001, will step down on Jan. 16.