HAMMONTON — Six volunteer firefighters have been suspended or removed from duty over allegations of sexual harassment, sending threatening text messages and running others off the road with aggressive driving.
“It was all internal — volunteers
allegedly doing this to other volunteers,” Mayor Steve DiDonato said
Tuesday. There is no allegation of anyone harassing or threatening
members of the general public, he said.
Town Council came back from a
closed session late Monday night to accept the resignation of John A.
Brigandi, remove probationary junior firefighter Joe Caruso and suspend
four others.
Brigandi, 43, is the Atlantic
County sheriff’s officer charged in June with official misconduct and
theft after he allegedly withdrew more than $1,500 from the local police
union’s account with the help of alleged accomplice Amber Jacobs.
DiDonato said the town’s actions
regarding Brigandi have nothing to do with the criminal charges, only
with his behavior as a volunteer firefighter.
Suspended as firefighters and
social members pending an investigation and hearings were Caruso’s
father, also named Joe Caruso; John Warren and his son John Michael
Warren, and Bill Tomasello.
DiDonato would not specify which
firefighter is accused of each type of wrongdoing but said four people
are accused of participating in sexual harassment behaviors against a
female firefighter, two are accused of sending threatening text messages
to other firefighters and one is accused of aggressive driving to force
another off the road.
“There is an ongoing
investigation by mayor and council,” said Assistant Fire Chief William
Eppler. “I’m not going to pass judgment. I want everybody to be heard
and go from there.”
He said there are about 70 firefighters in the department, about half of whom have spent at least 25 years as volunteers.
“There are a lot of good people
out here. I do not want this to reflect on every firefighter in the town
of Hammonton or on firefighters in general,” Eppler said.
The department has a large pool of volunteers, unlike in many communities, Eppler said.
“We’re very fortunate that way, and I want it to remain that way,” he said.
The mayor will address the remaining firefighters at a special department meeting 7:30 p.m. Wednesday night at Fire House No. 1.
“I would request that every volunteer be present,” DiDonato said.
On Tuesday, Brigandi declined to
discuss the allegations but said he did not intend to resign. He was
considering it and had given Town Solicitor Brian Howell a resignation
letter that Brigandi thought would not be acted on until after he had
spoken to officials after the executive session.
Howell said Brigandi has
requested council rescind his resignation, which will be considered at
the next public meeting. There is a special public meeting set for Oct.
19.
Brigandi said he has been told he would be suspended if the resignation is reversed.
None of the other suspended or removed firefighters could be reached for comment.
The Town Council vote was five
members in favor with two members, Ed Wuillermin and Mickey Pullia,
abstaining. Pullia is a volunteer firefighter, and Wuillermin had a
previous legal issue with Brigandi.
Prior to the November 2005
election, Brigandi, then a local Democratic Party leader, filed
citizen’s complaint bribery charges against Wuillermin and other
Hammonton First candidates.
Brigandi charged that a promise
of senior discount cards if the Hammonton First slate was elected
constituted a bribe of voters, but a judge ruled it was a campaign
promise and dismissed the charges.
Former Assistant Chief Sam Sofia,
who is now retired and living in Williamstown, said he didn’t think it
was fair to name firefighters before an investigation is done.
“It’s ridiculous that it comes to
this,” he said Tuesday. “Some of the guys mentioned in your article I’m
not very fond of ... but a man is innocent until proven guilty. I don’t
think they should be dragged around town and ridiculed for things
nobody knows if they did.”
Contact: 609-272-7219
Twitter @MichelleBPost
http://www.pressofatlanticcity.com/news/breaking/hammonton-firefighters-suspended-sexual-harassment-threats-alleged/article_03ad7ae4-66a2-11e5-b069-63deeb1ef707.html
Related posts
http://gadfly01.blogspot.com/2015/09/hammonton-volunteer-firefighters.html
No comments:
Post a Comment