WILLIAMSTOWN The Select Board has authorized the hiring of a private investigator to explore allegations of racial and sexual harassment at the Police Department, as revealed in a lawsuit
But it struggled with how that investigation and a parallel effort to re-envision policing in the town of 7,700 will fit into a timeline for replacing the chief of police. The board held a special meeting to gather for the first time since mid-December announcements that then-Chief Kyle Johnson was resigning and the plaintiff in a lawsuit raising those allegations was dismissing the action. The panel faced a number of complicated questions embedded in its single-item agenda, which advertised a discussion of Next steps for the Police Department. After more than two hours of discussion among the five board members and another 40 minutes of public comment, it was apparent those steps will involve four main tasks: the search for Johnson s replacement, an assessment of the town s policing needs, a review of police policies and the probe into allegations that stretch back for more than a decade.
Johnson s departure was announced early in Monday s Select Board meeting by Town Manager Jason Hoch, who, along with Johnson and the town, is a named defendant in a federal discrimination lawsuit brought by Sgt. Scott McGowan. That lawsuit, which came to light in August, raised allegations of sexual misconduct and racist behaviors in the WPD that touched off months of protest in the North Berkshire community. McGowan, who released his statement through resident and supporter Janice Loux, wrote that his decision to end the lawsuit came in response to Johnson s departure. After receiving the news, I have reflected on my current litigation with the Town, including the climate of distrust in our community, McGowan wrote. As such, I have reached a difficult decision to withdraw my federal lawsuit as I see this moment as an opportunity to join in our community s healing.