TN Safety chief stresses merit in trooper promotions

WKMS | By The Associated Press

Published September 12, 2012 at 8:02 AM CDT

Tennessee Safety Commissioner Bill Gibbons says he had to send strong signals early in his time in charge of the state Highway Patrol that the election of a new governor would not lead to favoritism for certain troopers. Gibbons says Republican Governor Bill Haslam insisted after his 2010 election that only performance and merit would influence promotions and assignments. Gibbons says after the initial surprise on behalf of some within the agency, the policy has contributed to improved morale. Former Democratic Governor Phil Bredesen had to overhaul the agency following a series of scandals that included troopers with criminal records, allegations of ticket-fixing and a culture of cronyism and political arm-twisting.

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Government & Politics wkms tennessee highway patrol

Todd Hatton

Todd Hatton hails from Paducah, Kentucky, where he got into radio under the auspices of the late, great John Stewart of WKYX while a student at Paducah Community College. He also worked at WKMS in the reel-to-reel tape days of the early 1990s before running off first to San Francisco, then Orlando in search of something to do when he grew up. He received his MFA in Creative Writing at Murray State University. He vigorously resists adulthood and watches his wife, Angela Hatton, save the world one plastic bottle at a time.

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