Stonington — The two finalists to become the town's next police chief are current Lt. Bryan Schneider and state police Lt. Col. Jay DelGrosso, who began his law enforcement career in Stonington in 1993.

The police chief search committee on Saturday chose the two men to move on to an interview with a panel of Connecticut police chiefs on March 16. The Board of Police Commissioners then will appoint either Schneider or DelGrosso to replace current Chief J. Darren Stewart, who is retiring.

The committee, which comprises the police commissioners, made the decision after interviewing four candidates over more than six hours on Saturday. There had been 10 initial applications for the position: nine from outside the department and Schneider, the lone internal candidate.

Board of Police Commissioners Chairman Bob O'Shaughnessy acknowledged Wednesday that choosing two finalists from among the candidates was a tough decision.

"We're trying to find the best candidate for the town," he said. 

After Stewart informed the board last fall that he planned to retire later this year, the board decided to first consider applications for the job from current department members who hold the rank of lieutenant or above. That meant in addition to Schneider, Lt. Michael Peckham and Capt. Todd Olson also were eligible to apply for the job. However, Olson and Peckham decided not to apply.

After interviewing Schneider in December, the board announced it would consider applications from outside candidates on a limited time basis, as well. It said the decision was "in no way a rejection of our internal candidate" but so the board could do "due diligence in this selection."

That decision angered members of the police department. All 53 officers and civilian employees of the department, with the exception of Stewart and Olson, sent a letter to the board in January, saying they were shocked at the decision to seek candidates from outside the department instead of hiring Schneider.

"From the inside looking out, we can't understand why the police commission would consider such a drastic move," reads the Jan. 4 letter, calling Schneider, a 21-year-veteran of the department, a proven, hardworking leader who is respected by not only his fellow officers but other first responders, town employees and the Connecticut State's Attorney's Office.

The police department staff who sent the letter, along with members of the Westerly Police Department and the town fire chiefs, also urged the board to hire Schneider and cautioned that hiring from the outside would hurt morale, as officers would not see a path to someday becoming chief.

Last week, the Waterford Police Department named Lt. Marc Balestracci as its new chief after only considering applications from current department members.

DelGrosso worked as a Stonington officer from 1993 to 2000, when he joined the state police. He is now part of the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection command staff serving as commanding officer for field operations. He is the former commanding officer of state police Troop E in Montville and worked as commanding officer of the Eastern District Major Crime Squad and commander of the State Police Eastern District, which covers Tolland, Windham, Middlesex and New London counties.

j.wojtas@theday.com