Town of Medway Spotlight | William Kingsbury | Lieutenant, Medway Police Department

As children, many of us are positively influenced by the adults that surround us. Repeatedly, these positive influences come from individuals who are dedicated, compassionate and goal-oriented leaders.  Often times we aren't even aware of their influences until we ourselves become adults. It is then, that the word mentor becomes clear.

Meet William Kingsbury, Lieutenant of Operations, Medway Police Department.  His upbeat personality and positive attitude is an influential force to both the residents of Medway and the officers under his command.  As a child, Lt. Kingsbury felt blessed to have such positive influences in his life and it is now his personal mission to give back, both through his work with the Medway Police Department and the community itself.

1. What led you to become a Police Officer in Medway?

Growing up in the city of Watertown, Massachusetts, I was always surrounded by a lot of people.  As you know, the city has a lot of good things to offer, but a child can easily go down the wrong path as well. Luckily, at an early age, my life was blessed with the positive influence of Police Officers that led me down the right path.  I was fortunate enough that a few of these police officers happened to be my friends’ parents.  They took me under their wing as their main focus was placed on youth in the neighborhoods they patrolled.  They would form relationships without us even knowing and would guide us toward sports and would take an interest in our school work and ask about future plans.  These police officers were responsible for doing extra-ordinary things for me as well as others.

I can recall an officer handing out a pair of snow boots to a kid whose parents couldn’t afford to buy them. The officer claimed the brand new boots were too small for him so he was giving them away, but in reality, he saw the child was in need and offered help without him knowing.  It wasn't until later in life that I recognized that these officers had gone out of their way to help people in need.

I moved to Medway in 1991. In 1993, I had the opportunity to work as a part-time public safety dispatcher (working at the time for future Chief of Police Robert Saleski). While working as a dispatcher, I was exposed to the standard of excellence that the Medway Police Officers uphold. It dawned on me that they were no different than the Police Officers I admired growing up. It was then that I made the decision to become a Police Officer myself and was grateful to be given the opportunity to join the ranks by then Chief David Lambirth.  I graduated from the Canton Police Academy in 1995, was promoted to sergeant in 2002, and shortly thereafter was assigned as a Detective Sergeant, a role I performed for fifteen years. I was promoted to Lieutenant in 2017.

2. What do you love MOST about serving the people in the Town of Medway?

I love that there are many ways the Police Department can make a positive impact on a person’s life.  As a Police Officer, we have the ability to take a negative situation and turn it into a positive. We can have a positive impact on an entire family and/or a business in the community.  We can make a positive impact every day in a multitude of ways.  Not everything in this job is positive.  We have to deal with many negative occurrences in people’s lives but if we can steer them through the negatives in a positive way or hopefully to a positive outcome, there is great satisfaction in that.  Our Community Impact and our Jail Diversion Programs are examples of this.  It is devastating to a family when the opioid crisis hits home with a loved one.  We’ve been lucky to be able to intervene and help many individuals and their families obtain treatment and assistance as they work through these difficult situations with Community Impact resources.  Our Jail Diversion Program has been in place for almost a year, and to date we’ve seen jail diversions, emergency commitment diversions, and clinical assistance which have been of great help to our residents.

3. What do you spend most of your day doing?

I am currently the Medway Police Department’s Lieutenant of Operations.  My responsibilities include supervising the department’s patrol, investigation, traffic, and public records response functions.  In addition, I oversee property and evidence control, risk management, specialized training, School Resource Officer programs, court prosecution, domestic violence programs, crime reporting statistics and analysis, and our critical incident response functions.  Within these areas, we strive to develop and maintain the best professional standards, to be responsive to the community, and to engage the community.

4. What is your favorite thing to do outside of work?

I love spending time with my wife, Debbie, and, when possible, with my three adult children.  I have been an assistant football coach at Medway High School for many years.  Although my children are grown and out of the program, I continue to play an active role in all aspects of coaching, especially developing young players to be their best.  I am happy to say that I maintain positive relationships with many of my former players and hope that both in my career on the Medway Police Department and as a coach on the sidelines of the town’s sports programs I am considered a mentor.

5.  Favorite Place to Travel?

I enjoy traveling to historical locations such as Paris and Rome. Last year, my son and I traveled to Normandy, which was a once in a lifetime experience.

More about Lieutenant Kingsbury

I have lived in Medway since 1991 and all three of my children are Medway High School graduates. Moving to Medway was a culture shock at first as buses and taxis were replaced by cows and strange wildlife.  Fortunately, I’ve become accustomed to living in the suburbs of Medway and wouldn’t want to change a thing!

I joined the Public Safety Communications Department in January, 1993.  It is funny to realize that we currently have police officers in our department that were not yet born when I took the position.  Suffice to say, our department is very young.  My daily goal is to develop these young officers to achieve their highest possible standard of excellence much like the police officers from my childhood did for me.