Police Chief Candidate Interviews & Selection Process

I am originally from Somerville and grew up in the area of Somerville and Medford. I have been with the city of Somerville as a police officer for 30 years. I started my career as a police officer in January 1994 where I was assigned to the patrol division and worked as a patrol officer in the East end of Somerville.

During my career I had the opportunity to work in several units throughout the department. I am a strong supporter of training. When I started as a patrolman on the street I saw that training was important and I took my own initiative to become an instructor in several disciplines and started to train officers in my own department. I wanted to make sure my certifications along with other officers in the department were always up to date. I have completed the Master’s Degree program in criminal justice through Anna Maria College.

I was promoted to Sergeant in 2001 and Lieutenant in 2006. I worked as a supervisor in the narcotics unit, general detectives, and gang unit. I also volunteered for the Northeastern Massachusetts Law Enforcement Council Regional Response / Special Weapons and Tactics (NEMLEC RRT/SWAT) Team. During my time in NEMLEC I advanced to the positions of Team leader, OIC of the Sniper Unit, executive officer, and acting commander. I supervised the NEMLEC Unit which consisted of 250 officers in several units to include Crowd management, ATV Unit for search and rescue, Mountain Bike Unit, K9 Unit, SWAT Team, Crisis Negotiation Unit, and Incident Management Team.

The NEMLEC RRT/SWAT team gave me the opportunity to network with over 65 cities and towns throughout the northeast along with numerous cities and towns in other states during training, competitions, special events, and critical incidents. I was also assigned to several high profile events such as the Presidential Inauguration for President Bush, President Obama, and the DNC National Convention. I also responded to the 2013 marathon bombing incident and conducted security operations during the search for the suspects. Since 2014 I am currently assigned to the training division and have assisted in the training of Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training. We have trained most of our officers in the department and numerous outside agencies in the CIT Training course. In 2015 I attended the FBI National Academy which also included Crisis Negotiation Training. I also formed a crisis negotiation unit within the department which is attached to our Special Response Team.

Benjamin Murphy served proudly for over 21 years with the New Britain CT Police Department in administrative, operational, and tactical leadership assignments. He was promoted to the rank of Deputy Police Chief in 2020, serving with distinction until his recent retirement as the city's Deputy Police Chief.

Ben’s professional credentials include successful completion of several nationally recognized executive leadership programs to include; FBI National Academy Session #278; Southern Police Institute Session #79; and the Senior Management Institute for Policing Session #83.

Ben has accumulated extensive operational, administrative, and tactical command level leadership experience during his tenure in the City of New Britain. His supervisory and command experience includes positions in all three divisions (Patrol, Criminal Investigations & Professional Standards). Additionally, his 11 years as a SWAT operator, team leader, and commander, prepared him for high tempo leadership insights, critical thinking, crisis management, and decision making.

In his former role as Deputy Chief, Ben fostered community relations by volunteering his time to various youth, culture, and faith-based groups. He started several mentoring programs within the high school and for new officers who enter the profession. He also coaches a multitude of sports and volunteers in many youth groups to include football, weightlifting, and girls lacrosse.

Ben always teaches and encourages others to pursue excellence and further their professional development. He is a certified CT POST and New Britain Police Department Academy Instructor in a number of specialized law enforcement areas. He is a valued faculty member at Dedication to Community (D2C), a national non-profit organization dedicated to teaching citizens nationwide how to break barriers between community and police. He also teaches leadership and executive insights for Team Training Associates.

Ben encourages life-long learning and holds a B.S. in Criminal Justice from Charter Oak State College. He is currently completing his graduate degree (M.S.) in Counter Terrorism at Nichols College (Fall, 2023).

Ben is married to his wife Kristen and they have two children, Tommy (17) and Chloe (12). Ben and his wife also teach Catechism for their church to 7th and 8th-grade children.

Deputy Chief Din (pronounced “DEEN”) Rasheed Jenkins Sr. is a proven leader and a 19-year veteran of Law Enforcement. He is currently the Deputy Chief in charge of the Boston Housing Authority Police and the Public Safety Department. In this role, Din is charged with the day-to-day operations which include: implementing 21st Century policing best practices; overseeing Massachusetts Police Accreditation Commission (MPAC) Accreditation requirements, fulfilling Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and public records requests; managing personnel retention; increasing staffing levels, developing strong community partnerships; building public trust through collaboration; and exceeding Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) mandates.

Din is the President & CEO, Chief Facilitator & Collaborator at Supply The WhyTM, a professional training and coaching company that specializes in diversity, equity, and inclusion training as well as leadership and cultural development. Supply The Why works with organizations of any size and facilitates difficult conversations about a wide range of polarizing topics such as The "Hows and Whys” behind police use of force and navigating the current state of race relations in America.

Din has delivered training and keynote addresses at Duke University in Durham, North Carolina; the Naval Undersea Warfare Center Division in Newport, RI; and at the DCU Center in Worcester, Massachusetts for the Massachusetts Facilities Administrators' Association (MFAA) Convention to name just a few.

His work with Supply The Why has been featured in FORBES Magazine, Shoutout LA (part of the Los Angeles-based Voyage Group of Magazines), the newsletter of The American Negotiation Institute; Negotiate Anything Podcast (a global negotiation podcast) as well as The Brockton Enterprise and the Patriot Ledger newspapers.

Din has taught Defensive Tactics & Use of Force; Integrating Communication, Assessment & Tactics; and Multiple Interactive Learning Objective (MILO) Range 2000 simulation for the Municipal Police Training Council. In addition, he is an FBI-certified Crisis Negotiator and a former member of the Metropolitan Law Enforcement Council (MetroLEC) Crisis Negotiations Team.

Din was a 2021 Black Excellence on the Hill Honoree, which was awarded by the Massachusetts Black and Latino Legislative Caucus.

Din holds a Master of Science in Crisis and Emergency Management from Lasell University and a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from UMass Boston. He is a member of the National Criminal Justice Honor Society, Alpha Phi Sigma.