By DAMIEN FISHER, InDepthNH.org
Brookline Fire Chief Charles Corey more likely than not violated numerous town policies against harassment, and likely breached the code of conduct for forging financial documents, according to an independent report.
But those findings were not enough for the town’s Board of Fire Wards to remove Corey from his job. The board is chaired by Assistant Fire Chief David Joki, who served as the interim fire chief during Corey’s suspension.
Corey was suspended in December after former administrative assistant Anais Molina alerted the Select board about Corey’s ongoing harassment and orders to forge documents. Selectmen hired attorney Anne Jenness to conduct an investigation into Molina’s allegations, then handed off all responsibility to the Fire Wards.
“An independent investigation was conducted, and a report provided to the Fire Wards. In consultation with legal counsel the Fire Wards reviewed the report and determined how they would respond to the situation; they informed the Select board of their decisions in late April,” Selectmen said in a statement released Friday.
“The Town of Brookline treats all personnel matters as confidential and respects the privacy of all current and former employees. Access to the confidential report of the independent investigation was limited to the Fire Wards; the Select board did not receive a copy.”
The Jenness report makes clear Corey largely did what Molina accused him of doing, but left the ultimate interpretation of Corey’s actions up to the Fire Wards.
“I find by a preponderance of the evidence that Corey violated the Town’s EEO Policy and/or Sexual Harassment Policy,” Jenness wrote. “As noted above, these EEO and Sexual Harassment Policies hold employees to a higher standard of conduct than the law requires. I do not draw conclusions as to whether these findings would represent a violation of federal, state, or local laws.”
Corey was ordered to apologize to Molina for the harassment, but it was determined the document forging was not a problem. Corey reportedly ordered a past assistant to forge invoices in order for the department to get reimbursed for medical exams.
According to Corey’s attorney, Bob Parodi, the Fire Wards were already well aware of Corey’s financial record handling before Molina complained.
“This creation of an invoice by the Recipient of the service, while unusual, is not done to defraud anyone and is not forgery. Further the creation of these invoices on December 28, 2020 and December 21, 2021 was done with the full knowledge and approval of the Fire Wards,” Parodi wrote in a letter to InDepthNH.org.
Parodi also disputes the characterization of the documents as forgeries. The fictional invoices used the letterhead and footer from Southern New Hampshire Medical Center, and included a fake signature, according to Molina.
Fire Ward Joki is one of the signers of the letter to Molina informing her of the board’s decision to keep Corey on the job after he apologized to her. Corey was reinstated to his job last month, prompting Molina to quit.