BETHEL – Fired police Chief Darren M. Tripp took out nomination papers Wednesday for a seat on the Board of Selectmen.

Six days ago, a 3-2 vote by the same board upheld Tripp’s Feb. 12 firing by Town Manager Scott Cole.

He was fired for failure to maintain contact with the Oxford County radio dispatch center failure to respond from inside the police station for 12 minutes on Dec. 2 despite repeated attempts by dispatchers using four separate communication methods to alert him about an armed robbery that had just occurred in Bethel.

Tripp is also engaged in a lawsuit against the town and Cole, which is not expected to begin in U.S. District Court in Portland until October.

Additionally, he was expected to file a wrongful termination amendment to his lawsuit.

Nomination papers, which became available Monday, were also taken out by five others interested in the three-year seats of Selectmen Don Bennett and Al Barth, whose terms end in June.

They are: Stan Howe, Francis Dumont, Dennis Doyon, Walley Hannigan and Robert Everett.

Bennett, who has yet to take out nomination papers, said Wednesday that he wasn’t sure if he would seek re-election.

Barth, however, resigned Tuesday after his house, which had been on the market, sold, said acting Chairman Reggie Brown.

But rather than convene a special town meeting to elect someone to fill Barth’s seat by May, selectmen are expected to save the expense and wait for town meeting in June.

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