Chief of Police

chief

John Szewczyk was appointed Boxborough Police Chief on April 10th, 2023 after serving in the Interim Police Chief role since November 2022.

Chief Szewczyk started his law enforcement career with the Hartford (Connecticut) Police Department where he served from 2002-2020 and where he authored both the Hartford Police Retention Plan and Recruitment Initiative which established a full-time recruitment unit thereby increasing minority recruitment by more than 80%.

In late 2019, Chief Szewczyk was appointed as a voting member to the State of Connecticut’s Task Force on Police Transparency & Accountability where he served until 2022.  In this capacity he played a major role in producing the 2021 Annual Report and 2022 Final Report which included recommending changes to improve many law enforcement practices, including reconstituting both internal and external policies and procedures and enacting practices that worked towards the more fair and equitable treatment of minority employees and citizens.  Further recommendations included changes to police department accreditation standards, the establishment of a Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Unit, improved departmental compliance with POSTC standards, and increased police training for interactions with the disability community (see CTPoliceTransparency.com).

Chief Szewczyk is a graduate of Trinity College and holds an MBA in Management and International Business from the University of Connecticut.  He was a State of Connecticut Certified Academy Instructor from 2011-2020 in multiple disciplines, including Cultural Diversity, Crimes Motivated by Bigotry & Bias, Immigration Law, and Morals & Ethics in Policing.  He is also a graduate of the Southern Police Institute’s Command Officers Development Course.

Chief Szewczyk is recognized as a progressive law enforcement leader and a strong advocate of community policing, diversion programs, restorative justice and improving the interactions between law enforcement and communities that have been historically disenfranchised.

Chief Szewczyk is extremely proud to lead the dedicated members of Boxborough Police Department as they serve the residents and visitors of Boxborough.