Chesterfield police lieutenant tapped as Farmville’s new police chief

Chesterfield County police Lt. Doug Mooney was named Farmville's new police chief yesterday.

Farmville's Town Council voted unanimously to appoint Mooney, said Town Manager Gerald J. Spates. Mooney is a 22-year veteran of the Chesterfield Police Department who lives just outside Farmville in Prince Edward County.

Mooney attended Longwood University for three years before graduating from Bluefield College. His wife graduated from Longwood, and their son and daughter both go there now.

"We've always loved the Farmville area ever since I attended Longwood back in the'80s," Mooney said, adding: "It's a great department and great officers there."

Mooney replaces Stuart Dunnavant, who retired as Farmville's police chief in May, citing health reasons.

Capt. Wade Stimpson has served as acting chief since then, and oversaw the investigation of the quadruple homicide in September at a Longwood professor's house.

Stimpson and Farmville Sgt. Andy Ellington were among five candidates interviewed for the chief's job from a pool of more than 60 applicants, Spates said.

Spates praised Stimpson and Ellington and said they did an excellent job on the quadruple homicide. But he said council members wanted to hire from outside the department after concerns were raised by an assessment of the agency completed in April.

The assessment was handled by Gregg E. Jarvies, retired chief of the Chapel Hill, N.C., Police Department.

The report concluded that the vast majority of the town police officers were dedicated, eager and committed, but that several officers had adversarial relationships with Longwood students. The report stated that the department did not make community policing a priority, did not function as a cohesive organization and lacked strong leadership.

"We needed a fresh outlook," Spates said.

Mooney, 45, now is a daytime patrol supervisor who oversees 44 officers in an area that covers half of Chesterfield.

His salary will improve from $75,554 in Chesterfield to $80,000 in Farmville. And when he starts his new job on Jan. 4, he will oversee 25 officers and an annual budget of $2.2 million.

Contact Reed Williams at (804) 649-6332 or .