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Wells follows in his father’s footsteps as the town’s chief of police. He tell his officers to keep in mind four simple virtues: honesty, common sense, courage and compassion.
“It’s a very difficult thing for someone to remember because of the complexity of society,” he said.
“In the negative world (police officers) work in, they’re going to forget this sometimes.”
Honesty and common sense, Wells said, are two things officers should maintain to avoid common mistakes and avoid situations getting out of hand.
“And courage is not about how tough you are. It’s about making decisions,”
he added.
Wells, who is in his second year as police chief, spoke of police compassion and commitment in addressing about two-dozen people Wednesday, Dec. 10 at Fuller Village. He called being the police chief “the honor of my life.”
“My love is for the job,” he said. “There’s a wonderful quality of life here.”
In his speech, Wells drew on an incident from his career to make his point about finding compassion, even in the worst of people.
He recalled one night in 1991 transporting a prisoner, a convicted murderer, to serve a life sentence in Walpole. The man had been found guilty of the murder of a Craig Street man, after what appeared to be an argument over money.
“It was a horrendous crime,” Wells recalled. “It was clear he was guilty. We went down to arrest him four houses down from where the crime occurred.”
But Wells said he still could sympathize when
the man’s sister was later killed in a separate case.
He said he felt for the father who was left to live
in the house alone, and the life wasted as a result of a bad choice.
“It goes to show that you can still have compassion for people no matter what they’ve done,” he said.
For Wells, that compassion came from learning about the field early on.
He recalled the old police station on Central Avenue, and going with his father to the station long ago. His father – Richard G. Wells Sr. – would go on to become police chief in 1988.
“I was five years old the first time I went (to the station),” said Wells. “All I ever wanted to do was work in East Milton. Never in my wildest dreams did I think I’d be the police chief.
“I started here 24 years ago…I’m so fortunate to have met a lot of great people along the way. If I do one thing when I retire, I will write a book about the people I’ve met.”
Wells said he still considers himself the same “idealistic person who just wants to make a difference” after his 20-plus years on the force.
He thanked the Milton Rotary Club for its ongoing commitment to the community.