Glen Klinkhart will act as a temporary Haines Borough police chief through Sept. 15 as current police chief Heath Scott moves his family from Washington, D.C. to Haines.

Klinkhart was hired by borough manager Bill Seward to act as chief in Scott’s absence. He began work on Thursday, Aug. 25.

Seward said he brought Klinkhart on to give officer Joshua Dryden a break. Dryden recently completed a nine-month stint as interim chief.

“We opted to bring Glen on and allow Josh to decompress a bit and help him maintain his work-life balance,” Seward said.

Seward said keeping the number of officers consistent by adding Klinkhart can keep officers from “burning out.” It’s often better to bring someone new to the police force instead of paying “gobs” of overtime to a current officer, Seward said.

Jila Stuart, borough chief fiscal officer, said the total cost to the borough for Klinkhart’s stay is $7,940. The cost includes lodging, per diem, travel and payroll.

Seward said Klinkhart is capable and qualified to cover for the chief. Klinkhart is a retired homicide detective who worked at the Anchorage Police Department for 17 years. He is also an author and public speaker.

This is Klinkhart’s third fill-in stint at the Haines Police Department; he worked most recently during the Southeast Alaska State Fair.

Seward said Chief Scott is just a phone call away if any questions or problems occur during his absence. Klinkhart’s familiarity with the department makes him a valuable fill-in hire who might be used when officers attend training workshops out of town.

“We were glad he was available,” Seward said.

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