Rep. Morgan asks AG Kilmartin to look into fire district meeting

STATE REP. PATRICIA L. MORGAN is asking the attorney general to investigate a meeting held Nov. 29 by the Coventry Fire District board, saying it violated the state Open Meetings Act. / COURTESY STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
STATE REP. PATRICIA L. MORGAN is asking the attorney general to investigate a meeting held Nov. 29 by the Coventry Fire District board, saying it violated the state Open Meetings Act. / COURTESY STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

COVENTRY – State Rep. Patricia L. Morgan has asked Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin to investigate a meeting held by the Coventry Fire District board over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend that she said violated the state’s Open Meetings Act.

The board is alleged to have violated the act by amending the notice of the meeting after the fact, and by discussing matters in executive session which by law are to be dealt with in public session, according to a press release issued by Morgan, R-Coventry.

She said both actions had the same intent: to mislead the public about the nature of the meeting and the matters discussed.
“The board’s explanation for this ‘emergency’ meeting is not at all credible. What are they hiding?” Morgan said.
The meeting was held Nov. 29. The meeting was posted on the Secretary of State’s website on Nov. 26 as an emergency meeting to discuss a personnel matter.
However, when outsiders, including Morgan, arrived, they were told to wait outside the building because the board was in executive session.
The meeting, which was to have lasted one hour, dragged on to 3 1/2 hours as reporters from several news outlets arrived, she said.
When the board finally reconvened, it voted on two items related to tax collections, but neither item was advertised nor could be considered an emergency.
Morgan said she suspected the meeting was called to discuss controversy over Coventry Fire District Chief Paul Labaddia, captured in a television news report playing golf when he was supposed to be working, allegedly drinking in local bar during normal working hours, and allegedly smoking what appeared to be marijuana after retrieving it from his fire district vehicle.

The board has hired attorney William Harsch to investigate the charges, but he has yet to formally issue his report.
When asked if the Labbadia matter had been discussed, the board replied it had not discussed the chief’s behavior. It said instead it had talked about two long-standing grievances and a union contract that does not expire for another 13 months.
“The public cannot know what was discussed in executive session, but one member said the reason for the meeting was to discuss ‘financial planning.’ There are two problems with this. First, such a discussion is clearly not an emergency. And second, it would have been illegal for the board to have this discussion in executive session under the Open Meetings Act,” said Morgan.
“The board’s actions are suspicious, to say the least. Operating under the cover of a holiday weekend, did they intend to foist an unpopular decision on unsuspecting residents? Were they forced to amend the original notice of an emergency session with an implausible explanation because the media showed up? Their reasoning for having this closed to the public meeting is contorted, and as a result, not credible.
“The public has a right to accurate information beforehand to know what the board is planning to deal with, and elected officials have a responsibility to fully disclose.
“The taxpayers of the district deserve honest management, honest accountability and honest transparency from these elected officials. I am hopeful the attorney general will see through these deceitful actions by the Coventry Fire District board, and act accordingly – and quickly,” she said.

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