Mayor Coogan renews Fall River Police Chief Furtado’s contract until Civil Service Chief is appointed

Without City Council approval, Mayor Paul Coogan has renewed Fall River Police Chief Kelly Furtado’s contract without a specific timeframe noted. The contract reads:

The Term contained in the Agreement is hereby amended to the following: The term of this Agreement shall continue until the mayor appoints a candidate from the civil service list, the candidate is approved by the city council, and the candidate begins his or her employment as the new chief of police for the City of Fall River.

You can see the full contract at the bottom of this article.

There is no timeframe specified, so technically, the contract is indefinite and the timeline is fully under control of the mayor. Based on the contract, he could finalize the new civil service chief in weeks or years.

Last Friday, Fall River Mayor Paul Coogan broke his commitment to the City Council by announcing his intention to give Police Chief Kelly Furtado a two year extension without approval from the city council. Fall River Reporter broke the story on Facebook and hours later WJAR 10 confirmed it. The announcement came hours after Fall River Reporter’s published:  From “One of the Best” to Targeted: How Fall River Police Department Weaponized a Warrant Against Ex-FRPD Officer which resulted in the City Council last night imitating a formal investigation into the FRPD.

How we got here

In April of 2025, the Fall River City Council voted 5-4 against Furtado getting a three-year contract and becoming the Fall River Police Chief. Furtado would be the fifth police chief in nine years and some on the council wanted a better process in selecting the next chief (other councils just approve whatever the mayor sends down). Councilor Shawn Cadime made a motion to send a letter to the mayor concerning the search committee which passed unanimously, 9-0.

In May of 2025, just a month later, a deal had been struck and Furtado was approved to be the permanent chief in a 5-4 vote. The deal?  The Council approved a home rule petition to make the police chief position based on civil service in the future and the chief would get a 1-year contract. There was a mayoral election in November, and the next mayor would decide the next chief. 

On Jan 29, 2026, Governor Healey signed the bill that moves the Fall River Police Chief position from a contract position to civil service with a contract. The bill was presented by State Rep. Carole Fiola and State Senator Michael Rodrigues. This was part of the deal Mayor Coogan struck with the city council and legislators put time into making it happen. 

Last night, in a 7-0 vote, the Fall River City Council voted to initiate a formal investigation into the actions of the Fall River Police Department involving their use of a search warrant to identify an individual behind an anonymous social media account.

Councilor Linda Pereira, who admitted that she “hasn’t seen the whole report,” spoke out against the investigation and then voted present. Councilors Cliff Ponte, Michelle Dionne, Shawn Cadime, Joe Camara, Michael Canuel, Christopher Peckham and Andrew Raposo voted yes. Councilor Paul Hart was not in attendance.

You can watch the fill Fall River City Council meeting on FRG Television here.