Dalton Water Commissioners Extend Chief's Suspension
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| There were 25 or so people in attendance. |
Updated Friday afternoon with information about the fire chief's public records request.
DALTON, Mass. — In a meeting that lasted less than a minute, the Board of Water Commissioners decided to extend Chief Christian Tobin's administrative leave until the investigation has concluded.
During Thursday's meeting, the board did not take any questions or comments from the audience of 25 but announced that the district's attorney, Elisabeth Goodman from Cain Hibbard and Meyer, who was not present at the meeting, hired an investigator to conduct an investigation.
Board Chair James Driscoll said that the board can not discuss the investigation at this time. When the investigation has concluded, a meeting will be held in open session to present the findings.
Following the meeting, Tobin explained that he had not heard from the district since they decided to put him on administrative leave in August.
"Tonight's the first I've really heard of them. So, I've been asking for them to do an investigation, to follow the handbook, to follow the procedures, to follow what needs to be done and what's appropriate so, we can get past this," Tobin said.
"...They didn't give me any direction of what to do while I was on administrative leave. So, I've had little to no guidance, and I don't know, I'd be surprised if it changes."
Tobin has been on administrative leave for the last four weeks as the district investigates his conduct following allegations of sexual harassment, grant overspending, and "employee concerns."
In an email that Tobin sent to the district on Thursday at 4 p.m., he expressed his concern regarding, what he said, are "unsubstantiated allegations and complaints that have been brought against" him.
In the email, Tobin also alleged that complaints have not been formally presented to him and that he has yet to be questioned or provided an opportunity to respond, violating the district's employee handbook and sexual harassment policy.
"Despite the seriousness of the complaints against me, none of these procedural steps have been followed," Tobin said in the email.
Following the meeting, Driscoll said he had not yet seen the email and did not comment on it.
In an email to iBerkshires, Tobin shared a copy of the complaints he said he received by certified mail from the District.
The documentation was separated into four files, none of which included accusations of sexual harassment.
One was a letter signed by several fire department staff requesting a meeting to discuss their complaints.
The remaining three documents shared included complaints of staff mistreatment, mainly yelling, losing his temper, and not effectively communicating issues.
"Members of the department have came [sic] to me stating that the chief is, 'hot-headed, he's flipped his lid, he's lost it again, he threw his keys down on the desk, he's unstable.' The concern for the membership and its working environment was brought to my attention," one complaint said.
Another complaint read, "There is never an explanation as to what we did wrong. You never know what chief is going to be there in the morning. I constantly feel like I have to walk on eggshells around him."
Also included were allegations of retaliation after a staff member questioned why they were passed over for the position of Ambulance Director after being told on several occasions to "get ready" for the job.
In addition, there were complaints of purchasing recliners and a Black Stone Grill in the ambulance bay without authorization and not carrying his radio, among other things.
This is the second time in Tobin's career he has been placed on administrative leave. According to public records from 2021, Tobin was placed on administrative leave while serving as the deputy chief of operations for the Greater Naples Fire Rescue District.
The documents show the reason being "insubordination, conduct unbecoming and misconduct."
"Of course, we recognize the work that you have done for the district, and we value your contributions to the agency," said the Greater Naples Fire Rescue District Conclusion of Formal Investigation document from Nov. 2021.
"Because of that, and in an attempt to allow you to exit the district in a dignified manner, we will offer you the opportunity to tender your letter of resignation in lieu of being terminated, if you wish."
Tobin requested to arbitrate, which resulted in a settlement to Tobin of $98,331, $13,550 of which went to Sugerman Susskind Braswell Herra Trust Account for his alleged attorney fees and costs.
As part of the settlement, Tobin agreed to "keep this agreement and the facts and circumstances leading up to the execution of this agreement confidential and shall not disclose any of its terms and conditions to anyone other than his immediate family, attorney, accountant, tax advisor, governmental agency, or as required by law."
However, Tobin has his own concerns about the Dalton District and an alleged lack of transparency.
Tobin expressed frustration with the district for not responding to his public records request, which included various documentation such as incident reports, credit card statements, expenditures, pay stubs, and documents related to the fire department's fiscal year 2023 debt, specifically a deficit of about $183,000.
Last Thursday, Tobin submitted an appeal to Secretary of State William Galvin's office regarding the district’s response to his public record requests.
The district informed Tobin that the cost estimate for the requested records is $1,630.45, which includes paper copy fees and labor costs.
This includes an hourly rate increase from $18 to $25 to reflect the time needed for a qualified individual to access, segregate or redact personal or protected health information, and reproduce documents, District Clerk and Treasurer Melanie Roucoulet said in a response to Tobin’s request.
"There has been no clear or lawful justification provided for this increase, especially given that the same individual, the Records Access Officer, is performing all related tasks. If the same person is responsible for both the initial and specialized tasks, there should be no increase in the hourly rate, making this fee estimate both unclear and unjustified," Tobin said in his appeal.
"Such actions appear to be an attempt to unduly burden my access to public records, which is contrary to the principles of transparency and fairness outlined in Massachusetts Public Records Law."
The district also informed Tobin that the public records are not available electronically due to lack of access and software.
“Nearly all modern records are maintained in electronic formats, and it is reasonable to expect that the District possesses the capability to provide them as such,” Tobin said in his appeal.
“This refusal appears to be another unjustified barrier to accessing public records, increasing unnecessary costs and reducing transparency.”
In the appeal, Tobin narrowed his previous public records request to just documents related to the Fire Department Fiscal Year 2023 debt and credit card statements for the fire department.
Tobin started his service to the town in January, during FY24.
Roucoulet, the district treasurer, previously attributed the deficit to overtime, Tobin said, adding that he is skeptical that this is the cause.
"I don't think the public in Dalton or anyone should have to take it on face value. It's a public organization. It's public money. People need to know where their money is, what it's spent on," Tobin said.
"It should be reported monthly at the monthly meeting. I don't know what all the smoke and mirrors is with them, or why they're not willing just to give up the records, but I don't want to speculate."
The district addressed a debt of $165,000 in a meeting on August 29.
Tags: suspension, water district,
