Maj. Michael L. Tabor, a 25-year veteran of the Baltimore Police Department, is retiring from the force to become chief of police in Crisfield, a small town on the Lower Eastern Shore.
Tabor, 49, who said he comes from a long line of watermen on Virginia and Maryland's Eastern Shores, said yesterday that he is excited to return to a waterfront community while continuing to serve in law enforcement. He said he and his wife plan to build a house in the town.
The Crisfield Police Department has 15 officers and has been struggling recently with spates of burglaries and thefts driven by addicts fueling the area's illegal narcotics trade, Tabor said. He said his first priority will be to help the town "get a grip" on its drug trade.
Tabor became a Baltimore police officer in July 1981 and most recently served as chief of district detectives, who investigate violent incidents and property crimes in each of the city's nine police districts.
He previously worked in other supervisory roles in the detective division, in Northern District operations and in internal affairs, according to the Police Department.
He will retire from the city Police Department on Friday and is expected to take over as chief in Crisfield on March 1.
Tabor, who has a boat, said yesterday that after years of police work in Baltimore, he's looking forward to a change in lifestyle. Crisfield, which has been seeking a new police chief for several months, has about 2,700 residents.
"Just being able to meld in the watermen's life and being able to be chief of police in a town down there ... it's amazing," Tabor said. "This is where I want to be.".