MIDDLETON, Mass. — The Middleton Select Board held a hearing Wednesday on whether to remove Police Chief William Sampson. The town argued he has fallen short of its expectations for nearly two years. Sampson's lawyer told the board the effort is retaliation for a discrimination lawsuit the chief filed against the town.

The board took no vote. The chair said the board will meet Friday at 9 a.m. to take final action. Board members can either end Sampson's appointment when his contract expires June 30, 2027, or rescind the notice.

Under the town charter, the police chief's appointment is indefinite. That means the chief stays in the job beyond his contract unless the board removes him for good cause after a hearing. The chair said the hearing was held in open session at Sampson's request.

The town's case

Town counsel told the board that earlier this year the board notified Sampson his contract would not be renewed and that it wants to "move in a different direction." The board has seen a communication breakdown between the chief and town leadership, counsel said, along with a reluctance to collaborate or follow up on basic requests.

"The evidence that will be presented today is not a single or egregious act of misconduct," counsel said.

Town Administrator Justin Sultzbach was the town's witness. He testified about:

• a use-of-force policy Sampson updated in 2024 without first going to the police union, which Sultzbach said forced the town to bargain over it afterward;
• a February 2025 vacation that overlapped with the department captain's;
• Sampson missing a public forum and a pre-town-meeting session on a public safety budget override because of an out-of-state conference.

Sultzbach said he placed Sampson on a performance improvement plan that ran from September to November 2025.

The chief's side

Sampson's lawyer, Timothy Burke, said the chief has been a police officer for 37 years and has never been disciplined. Burke said Sampson was hired to clean up a department in disarray and that board members praised his work as recently as last year.

Burke said the friction followed the chief's discrimination claim, which he said was first brought to the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination and is now pending in Essex Superior Court. The Salem News has reported that Sampson sued the town alleging discrimination and retaliation. Burke said the performance improvement plan came only after Sampson returned from injured-on-duty leave related to firearms training in 2025.

Town counsel introduced a document the town said showed the improvement plan was being drafted before the injury. Burke objected that the document had never been turned over to him.

Under cross-examination, Sultzbach agreed that he gave Sampson ratings of "exceeds job standards" on several items in a June 2026 performance evaluation. Sultzbach also said he had not denied the chief vacation time.