Last Monday, Fremont Police Chief Neal Janvrin was fired. Town officials, though, don’t think the public should know any more details than that.

All questions are referred to the town attorney, John Ryan, who would say only that Janvrin was fired after a decision by the selectmen. That is not very helpful.

Janvrin has been Fremont’s chief of police since 1989. We understand that selectmen do not want to get themselves into any legal trouble. But when the police chief of 23 years is fired suddenly, the residents deserve more of an explanation than the town is giving.

Meanwhile, over in Hooksett, the town has had an acting police chief for just shy of one year. It was last September when Chief Stephen Agrafiotis was placed on leave. In January he resigned. Last week, acting chief Jon Daigle officially asked to be relieved of the chief’s duties and returned to his status as a police captain.

In a letter, Daigle wrote to the Police Commission that he had hoped to end his career as chief of police, and he listed many accomplishments, such as boosting officer morale and improving relations with the public. But, he wrote, “I am disappointed in the fact that since becoming the acting chief of police in September 2011, the Hooksett Police Commission has not communicated any goals or expectations for me as Acting Police Chief. The fact that the Commission has failed to complete my evaluation due last November and has not offered any input on my performance has contributed to my decision.”

That is quite an indictment of the commission from the acting chief. Coming as it does nearly a year after Daigle was made acting chief, and with no permanent chief in sight, it makes one wonder if anyone is actually minding the store over there.

In each of these cases, the public is left to wonder about the future of the police department. The least the relevant public officials could do is let the people know what their plans are moving forward.