Overview
- The select board voted after a three-hour private session Wednesday night to place Town Manager Thomas Calter and Police Chief Donna McNamara on paid administrative leave while it hires an outside investigator.
- McNamara has filed a harassment and discrimination lawsuit accusing Calter of demanding her resignation and using misogynistic language against her.
- Court filings allege Calter ordered the destruction of a second internal-review report tied to the reopened Sandra Birchmore investigation and that McNamara refused to comply.
- McNamara, Stoughton’s first female police chief and the department’s only woman officer, drew public and union support at Town Hall and her attorney says no written complaint has been produced; a Friday court hearing is likely to be delayed by the town’s probe.
- The dispute centers on oversight of the Birchmore case, which drew FBI interest and a revised medical examiner finding, and the independent investigation could determine leadership, transparency and next steps for local public-safety oversight.