The Middletown Press (Middletown, CT)
Councilors, mayor in bias battle
Council gathers on document release; Drew slams meeting as not ‘legal’
MIDDLETOWN — Empty seats lined the Common Council table when an absent Mayor Dan Drew and several council members did not attend a recent special meeting called to discuss release of documents related to the investigation of the mayor’s and general counsel’s office.
Councilors could take no action without a seven-member quorum. Present at the meeting were Deborah Kleckowski, Minority Leader Sebastian N. Giuliano, Robert Blanchard, Deputy Majority Leader Mary Bartolotta, Philip Pessina and Linda Salafia.
The meeting was called to discuss and either respond to the mayor’s request or take “appropriate action.”
“This meeting was not a legal meeting, and it was scheduled last minute. I had a prior commitment, and nobody asked if I could make it. It was a charade and it was meant to be a political spectacle,” Drew said in a phone interview following the meeting. He said the meeting was planned in secret and the public was given “barely 24 hours” notice.
He is asking for copies of emails between Giuliano, Bartolotta and investigating attorney Margaret P. Mason.
Several council members had prior commitments that evening, Drew said. His request was directly related to FOIA filings made by Planning and Zoning Chairman Stephen Devoto and Daley.
This follows a complaint made earlier this year by Michelle DiMauro, human resources director of the Board of Education, who alleged she had been denied a pay raise and Drew was responsible.
Earlier this month, Drew emailed the council and town clerks, and the director of IT, requesting the documents related to a gender bias investigation into the mayor’s office, during which 23 individuals, some of which were employees, testified under a presumption of anonymity. Drew requested the documents be turned over to city attorneys, Bill Connon and Mark Sommaruga of Pullaman & Comley, because it was “required by FOI.”
Giuliano responded by strongly advising the clerks not to comply with the requests, citing the council’s rejection of two resolutions that called for release of the information.
“I regret that Councilman Giuliano has put you in a difficult position, and I remind you that each of you are classified service employees and that no member of the Council possesses the authority to direct you or to advise you to disregard statute,” Drew wrote in the email.
In a heated email exchange between Giuliano and Drew, during which the mayor argued the council and town clerks report to him, Giuliano claimed the common council, its members and staff are bound by the actions of the council. Giuliano also argued the attorney retained “represent the interests of the city, and some of the requests at issue come from within the city government.”
After initial orders were not followed , the mayor sent another email a week later, directing council clerk Linda Reed to produce the documents, Giuliano said.
“Consider this a directive. It is clear and unmistakable. Failure or refusal to comply with this directive shall be considered insubordination,” the Drew email said.
“The council is disobeying the Freedom of Information Act. They don’t get to decide that; the law dictates that. They conducted an unethical investigation and they have an obligation to turn in these documents . ... I did not direct the clerk to produce it to me. I directed her to follow the law, which she is required to follow under state statute , Drew said in the phone interview.
“They have to respond to FOIA and we hired attorneys to help. The attorney’s only job is to provide us as a group how the law applies in this situation,” Drew said.
Kleckowski condemned the mayor’s request.
“The mayor should not put a city employee in a position to choose between disobeying a directive from the mayor who is not her direct supervisor. Her report is to the council, and to have her choose between breaking the law of attorney client privilege under threat of insubordination is reprehensible,” she said.
“This is a backdoor attempt to find out who the 23 people are who came forward to express their concerns about their work place, and how they were treated in their general work environment. By all means, their identity should be kept confidential,” Kleckowski said.
The mayor disagreed. “I don’t want employee information, I want to show the degree that they conducted an inappropriate, unethical and immoral investigation. The documents will show that Bartolotta and Giuliano were a part of this day-to-day investigation and how (Mason) spent her time. Giuliano misled the council to openly encourage breaking the law. They want to protect themselves,” Drew said in the call with The Press.
Local Connecticut Employee Union President Geen Thazhampallath said Reed feared the mayor would come to her office to demand records. “What has gone wrong in our city government where an employee is scared to go to human resources? Human resources is supposed to help, not hurt them,” Thazhampallath said during the special meeting . His statement was followed by applause.
Reed wiped what appeared to be tears away as she struggled through her duty of transcribing meeting minutes.
“That’s the atmosphere and culture that exists here. The reason the report was necessary, and an investigation was necessary, was because of this behavior. Once you release information that’s attorney-client privilege, you’re releasing the genie in a bottle — there’s no coming back,” Thazhampallath said.
“I’m ashamed what I’m seeing tonight. They are not here intentionally. It’s purposeful and I know they are watching,” resident Edward Mckeon said as he called out the names of absent council members. Each iteration was met with boos from those in attendance.
Board of Education employee Christine Bourne, who ran unsuccessfully against Drew in the 2011 primary, said “Our members are not here because they are afraid … this mayor came in saying he was going to make things better and he has made things significantly worse.”
“This is out of control … I don’t know what they think they are going to find in these emails. It’s a total waste of time, in my opinion,” Salafia said.
Blanchard brought up the subject of a charter revision. “This relentless pursuit only illustrates why (the mayor’s office) should be afraid in the first place. We need to change the way things are done here,” he said.