At Tuesday’s Select Board meeting, town counsel walked members through different scenarios regarding the Tim Brennan situation.
Brennan, who was terminated from the Hopkinton Police Department by the Select Board on Feb. 8, filed a grievance and is taking his case to arbitration. The result of that arbitration — which will be conducted privately — could go any number of ways, explained attorney Donna Brewer from the law firm Harrington Heep, which represents the town.
The arbitrator could affirm the Select Board decision, could decide to reinstate Brennan but with some punishment, could reinstate him without any punishment, or could reinstate him and award him not just back pay but monetary damages as well.
Both sides must abide by the arbitrator’s decision. While it could be appealed to court, arbitration decisions usually are not overturned, Brewer said.
The town’s labor counsel has been waiting for the union counsel (which represents Brennan) to submit a list of names of possible arbitrators, at which point the sides will attempt to agree on a name, Brewer said.
The arbitrator will be someone who is “experienced in reviewing decisions about police officers and their discipline, suspension and termination,” Brewer said. “I’m certain that is the type of person they are looking for.”
Asked what would happen if the Select Board decided to change course, Brewer said that a vote to reinstate Brennan would make the arbitration moot. The Select Board also could continue negotiations with Brennan’s counsel for some other kind of resolution.
Board member Shahidul Mannan asked if there was any risk for the town if the Select Board were to intervene before arbitration is completed.
“Yes, I would think it would be likely that the town would be hit with a lawsuit,” Brewer said.
Chair Brian Herr asked if the town still would be at risk if the Select Board decided to act after arbitration was completed.
“Could we then come in after the fact if we didn’t like what was going on?” he asked.
“The board can come in at any time and take unilateral action if your action is going to be to reinstate him,” she responded. “If you’re talking about something else, some kind of reinstatement with a suspension or some other kind of agreement or resolution, I suspect that is going to require cooperation by Sgt. Brennan and his attorney to reach some kind of resolution that would not result in a lawsuit.”
Mannan also asked if there were some items that were discussed in executive session that now could be shared with the public, and Brewer said she could look at the documentation to determine what might be possible, although nothing immediately came to mind. In the meantime, the new Select Board members — Herr and Joe Clark — planned to review executive session notes so they were aware of the confidential information that was discussed.
Member Amy Ritterbusch noted that the POST (Peace Officer Standards and Training) Commission, which is responsible for the state’s certification process for police officers, sent a letter last year indicating there was a preliminary investigation being launched into Brennan, and she noted that he still is listed as not certified. She asked if he could be rehired if he is not certified.
“If he is not certified by POST to serve as a police officer, we cannot hire him as a police officer,” Brewer said, adding that there is no way to predict when a POST decision would be made.
Following the discussion, the matter was tabled.
I don’t think he should be reinstated. He was a mandated reporter and chose to do nothing. You can’t pick and choose which laws you want to follow. Just because people like him doesn’t mean he should a policeman. We have several good officers on the HPD. Let’s reward them for following the law.
As I understand it (and as presented at the hearing and not refuted by town counsel), he was not a mandated reporter when he became aware of the situation, as the survivor was an adult at that time, reporting on a past event.
Ruth – You should better inform yourself of the facts. The entire premise you base your opinion off is false. He was not a mandated reporter, protected and assisted the victim with the process of coming forward, and did not violate a single law. In fact, several of the policy violations he is accused of were not in fact policies at the alleged time of violation. Furthermore, police officers use discretion everyday when it comes to the laws they enforce. Have you ever heard of a verbal or written warning in lieu of a ticket?
Police officers do not use their “discretion”’ when deciding to report that their co-worker assaulted a child. There’s a world of difference between a speeding ticket and what Brennan did.
This statement contains numerous errors. It has been repeatedly clarified that this is not a mandated reporter situation. Please stop spreading misinformation.