Wentworth named acting chief of police

Sean Kennedy (rear center) on the day he was appointed chief of police by the Select Board on June 17, 2024. Also in the photo: board members Jim Hutchinson, Kim Bodnar, and Jennifer Glass, and (right rear) Town Administrator Tim Higgins. (Photo: Lincoln Police Dept. Facebook page)

Lt. Jon Wentworth, a 27-year veteran of the Lincoln Police Department, was named acting chief of police during a closed-door meeting of the Select Board on May 12. The action was taken after Chief of Police Sean Kennedy was arrested on May 10 on domestic violence charges and the town put him on paid administrative leave.

A call to Martin F. Kane II, Kennedy’s attorney, was not returned.

On Tuesday, media outlets including the Boston Globe and 10Boston (NBC) reported more details of the incident. The woman required stitches to close a wound near her eye, according to the Boston Globe, citing the Westwood police report. 10Boston (NBC) quoted the same report, saying the woman told police this was not the first time Kennedy had assaulted her. “She stated ‘he’s just a jealous guy’ and that he ‘definitely lost his [expletive], it doesn’t take much'” but that Saturday’s injuries were “‘worse than anything in the past.'”

Acting Chief of Police Jon Wentworth.

Wentworth was promoted to lieutenant in July 2024 after serving as a sergeant for 10 years. Before that, he was a detective for 11 years and a patrol/juvenile officer for five years, according to his LinkedIn page.

This is not the first time in recent years that a Lincoln Police Department officer has been arrested. Dispatcher Spencer Hughes was arrested in October 2020 on charges of possessing child pornography and resigned a week later while the town was in the process of moving forward with a termination hearing.