New officer who was on probation resigns before town questions chief

BRIMFIELD (AP) -- A newly hired police officer in Brimfield who's on probation for threatening a neighbor's young daughter has resigned.

The move by Patrick O'Donoghue came before a meeting Tuesday in which selectmen were set to question police chief Charles Kuss about the hire.

O'Donoghue is on probation after calling a neighbor and threatening to rape his 12-year-old daughter in 2003.

Selectmen had complained Kuss didn't tell them anything about O'Donoghue's past before they approved him for the job of part-time patrolman.

Kuss said the 34-year-old O'Donoghue was (quote) "an asset," despite the baggage he brought to the job.

O'Donoghue was a Paxton police officer when he threatened the girl. He is now a full-time dispatcher in Sterling.