Kelvin Burdine may be the new town marshal in Caledonia, but that doesn’t mean he’s exactly a stranger.
Burdine, 48, was selected as marshal during the town’s February board of aldermen meeting. He was selected over current deputy marshal John Peavy, who has served as interim marshal since the resignation of Ben Kilgore on Jan. 4.
The Monroe County native came to Caledonia after almost six years with the Columbus Police Department where he served as an investigator. Burdine’s salary will be $43,000 annually.
While there will undoubtedly be some new things he’ll encounter in the job, familiarity with the town, its people and its four deputy marshals won’t be an issue.
“I live in Caledonia and, at one point or another, I’ve gotten to know the deputies a little bit through my job with the CPD,” Burdine said. “I don’t expect any issues there. The biggest difference is there’s less crime in Caledonia, so that will allow me to get out and be more active in the community and do more neighborhood patrols and those sorts of things.”
Mayor Mitch Wiggins said he’s impressed Burdine has already begun brainstorming ways to improve the marshal’s office even though he won’t officially start the job until March 1.
“I know he’s already met with the deputy marshals and initiated some improvements within the department,” Wiggins said. “We are excited to work with Marshal Burdine and fully support his ideas and the plans he has for our community.”
Burdine said he plans to move slowly and get to know the job a little better before making any big policy changes, but he believes modernizing and upgrading the department’s equipment is something he’ll pursue right away.
“There are things I’m already working on, like trying to put in a new report system,” Burdine said. “I’m also in the process of changing over weapons and updating them. The goal is to get everything in the department up to date. I’ll be looking at some grant funding that will help with that so that it doesn’t become a burden on the town’s budget.”
The town marshal position opened after Ben Kilgore resigned after posting social media comments critical over a change in policy adopted by the board that required deputies to leave their patrol cars at the marshal’s office at the end of shifts rather than take them home. Kilgore was put on administrative leave on Jan. 4 and tendered his resignation the next day.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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