A second Pittsfield police officer is suing the city claiming he was retaliated against for being a whistleblower.Christopher Kennedy, 57, says he was passed over for promotion based on his age and for complaining about what he believed to be violations by the city of Pittsfield. A similar lawsuit filed by Sgt. Mark Lenihan in April came to light last week. Attorney Tim Burke of Needham is representing both men.
“There really is no other remedy,” Burke said. “They’ve taken it to the mayor. He’s certainly been informed of what their status and the nature of complaint was. There’s been a pattern of retaliatory conduct and it’s culminated in the fact that they were unable to be promoted, which they certainly had every right to be promoted. With the benefit of a lawsuit there’s no way to remedy that.”
The City of Pittsfield, Mayor Dan Bianchi, Pittsfield Police Chief Michael Wynn and Capt. David Granger are listed as defendants in both federal court cases.
A 27-year veteran of the force, Kennedy says he was immediately retaliated against after being listed first for promotion to sergeant around March 2013. He says Lt. Katherine O’Brien wrote a report of alleged wrongdoing by Kennedy regarding a missing person. Kennedy says O’Brien and Granger have a close personal and working relationship. According to the lawsuit, Kennedy says the report was written to discredit his decision-making abilities and force him to respond in writing therein giving the defendants reason to bypass him for promotion. After Granger ordered him to respond, Kennedy complained to other officers and Mayor Bianchi that he was being wrongly investigated, according to the lawsuit filing.
In November 2013, Kennedy complained to department members, including Lenihan, that Granger’s son was classified as a veteran on the civil service list even though he had no military service. Lenihan made the same complaint.
“Had that not been brought out it’s uncertain as to what the potential outcome could have been in terms of the hiring,” Burke said. “That’s one of the many different things that they brought to the attention of the mayor that should have been remedied. It certainly is important to have people being able to compete for promotional opportunities as well as hiring opportunities on an equal footing.”
The city says that was an error by the Civil Service Unit since the father and son share the same name. Capt. Granger is a veteran. Police Chief Wynn, speaking last week, said Capt. Granger acted once he realized the mistake.
“He notified the personnel office and the civil service unit,” Wynn explained. “They acknowledged that it was an inadvertent merger error and they corrected it.”
The city says the younger Granger was never a candidate for employment with the police department. Following his complaint, the lawsuit says, Kennedy was passed over multiple times for promotion. Kennedy says he was also encouraged to retire to open up a position.
In vowing to vigorously defend its actions in Lenihan’s lawsuit, the city of Pittsfield provided information on a 2009 case involving its decision to not promote Kennedy to back up its promoting practices. The Civil Service Commission dismissed the case as the city cited a series of disciplinary actions against Kennedy from 1989 to 2008 as reasoning for bypassing him despite the fact that he had more years of experience compared to the officer who was promoted.
Reached by phone Thursday, Kennedy said bringing attention to these issues is a good thing. Burke says Kennedy and Lenihan remain active in the department.
The City of Pittsfield said Thursday that it could not comment at this time. City Council President Melissa Mazzeo says she is troubled by the potential impact the lawsuits may have on the department, but….
“I feel very comfortable that the mayor, the solicitor and the police chief in their choice to choose candidates within the civil service guidelines…that it was done correctly,” Mazzeo said. “So that part of it I have no issues with.”
Both lawsuits cite a hostile work environment within the department. Mazzeo, who’s served three council terms, says she hasn’t heard similar complaints before.
“I have a good relationship with a number of people in the police department and Chief Wynn,” Mazzeo said. “I’ve never heard it trickle down to people saying anything to me. I’m one of those councilors where people feel comfortable coming to me and talking to me about situations. So I feel if there was really a hostile work environment I would’ve heard about it before and I really haven’t.”
A status hearing on Lenihan’s case is set for February 10th. No date has been set for Kennedy’s case.
