It’ll have to wait!
The hiring of the new Alexandria Police Chief has temporarily been put on pause after only three of the six aldermen showed up for the regular monthly Alexandria town council meeting Tuesday night at city hall.
Officer Vincent Turocy, appointed by Mayor Beth Tripp, is currently serving as interim chief.
Those present for the meeting were Mayor Tripp and Aldermen Jonathon Tripp, Sherry Tubbs, and Jeff Ford. Those absent were Aldermen Luke Prichard, Bobby Simpson, and Tiffany Robinson.
Although Mayor Tripp announced that no city business could be transacted, she allowed department heads and the city auditor to make reports to the aldermen. She also announced that City Attorney Matt Boss, who was appointed to the position only four months ago, has resigned.
Interim Chief Turocy was also permitted to formally ask that he be hired by the board as the new chief
According to the Alexandria city charter “A majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum, and the presence of the Mayor and three (3) Aldermen, and in the absence of the Mayor, the presence of the Vice-Mayor and three (3) Aldermen shall constitute a majority. The Mayor shall preside at meetings of the Board and is authorized to vote in the event of a tie vote of the Board. She shall have veto power over any legislative actions of the Board”.
Turocy, who came to Alexandria from Hendersonville last September, has a law enforcement background spanning more than 27 years. He is a retired lieutenant with the Tennessee Highway Patrol (Nashville District).
“I am here today to ask if I could serve you and the citizens of Alexandria as your next police chief. It would be my goal to provide our community with professional and a reliable police force. I will be involved in our community and its events and I plan to create some of my own,” he said.
“I started my career in public service in 1993 when I joined the United States Army Military Intelligence Corps after graduating from high school,” said Officer Turocy.” I served three years before leaving to pursue my career in law enforcement. I am a graduate of Bethel University with an associate and a bachelor’s degree in emergency services management with a 4.0 GPA. In 1999 I joined the Tennessee Highway Patrol as a communications dispatcher and then I became a reserve police officer in 2000 with the Burns Police Department and I was subsequently hired by the Tennessee Highway Patrol in the spring of 2000 while still being a THP dispatcher. In 2014 I was promoted to sergeant over the state capital protection unit where I supervised 22 state troopers and oversaw the protection of the state capital complex in Nashville. I returned to the road in 2015 as the Robertson County midnight sergeant and in 2017 I was made the full-time supervisor in that area. I later transferred to Sumner County as road sergeant where I supervised Sumner and Wilson County troopers. In 2022 I was promoted to lieutenant over the Nashville District in special events for the THP in Davidson County. I was honored to receive THP Trooper of the Year in 2001 and 2003. Additionally, I received District THP Trooper of the Year in 2001, 2012, and 2013. Throughout my career I have also received also numerous commendations. In July 2024 I retired from the state of Tennessee,” said Officer Turocy.
Meanwhile Nathaniel (Nate) Lombard of Sparta, a former White County officer, addressed the board asking that he be hired by the board as a full-time officer. He is married to Veronica Dodge who had two brief stints as an Alexandria Police Officer before recently leaving to join the Smithville Police Department.
“I joined the military in 1998 and did six years as a combat medic and got EMT certified,” said Lombard. “I grew up in Lake City Florida. After getting out of the military I worked as an EMT in San Antonio for about five years. In 2007 I decided I wanted to do law enforcement, so I went to the San Antonio College Law Enforcement Training Academy. I graduated from there. I got my first police officer job in 2008 with a county hospital police department and worked there for 10 years. While there I became certified as a field training officer and had numerous experiences running shifts. I actually helped them develop and wrote the policies for a tactical medic program because they didn’t have one. We came to Tennessee in 2018 to be closer to family and I did a short stint with Murfreesboro. In 2021 I got hired on with the White County Sheriff’s Office. I worked there for about three and a half years. While there I again worked as an FTO. I was a patrol sergeant and ran one of the night shifts for a couple of months,” said Lombard.
Other members of the Alexandria Police Department are part timers Jon Jenkins and Stephen Wassman.