MOUNT DESERT – The town police officer who resigned after being charged with drunken driving for a third time has been hired as a part-time public safety dispatcher.

The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday approved the appointment of Troy Cleaves to the dispatching office, according to Town Manager Michael MacDonald.

MacDonald said the board discussed whether Cleaves should be tested for alcohol use, but decided it was not possible because the town doesn’t have a certified drug-testing program.

“Without [a certified program], we can’t do it,” MacDonald said. He said Cleaves “is fully aware of the consequences of what he’s done” and questioned how much more he should be punished.

Cleaves, 35, will stand trial next week on the third OUI charge. He pleaded not guilty but resigned as a police officer in January after losing his appeal to the state to keep his driver’s license.

MacDonald said he and Police Chief John Doyle were pleased to have Cleaves as a dispatcher because of his experience as a beat policeman.

“He’s well aware of the difficulties in the field and hopefully will make allowances for that” while dispatching emergency calls, MacDonald said.

Town leaders in both Mount Desert and Swans Island, where Cleaves began his police career, knew of his two OUI convictions when they hired him.

In other business Tuesday, selectmen approved a request by MacDonald to create a new position of director of finance and administration. He plans to offer the job to the town’s longtime treasurer and tax collector, Jean Bonville, hoping she will accept the position until she retires at the end of the year.

“I’m confident that if she applies, I will recommend her to the board,” he said.

The new finance director, in addition to discharging the duties of treasurer and tax collector, would help MacDonald establish financial policies and planning for the town. The job also will have direct supervisory responsibilities, MacDonald said.

The job will be posted for 14 days in-house, MacDonald said.

“What I’m looking for” in creating the new position “is someone who can help me with the financial planning of the town,” the manager said.