By Matthew Spolar
The Concord Monitor
CHICHESTER, N.H. — Chichester fire Chief Gilbert Vien will remain on paid administrative leave despite being cleared of any criminal wrongdoing after complaints were filed against him from within the department, the selectmen decided Tuesday night.
“Now that that’s cleared, we want to look and see if there’s been any personnel policy violations” committed by Vien, Selectman Richard DeBold said.
In February, successive complaints were filed against Vien by fire department employees. One was filed by Daryl Wyatt, a former emergency medical technician, alleging he was wrongfully fired, and the reason for a second complaint has remained unclear.
The complaints were investigated at the county level to avoid a conflict of interest with the local police. Vien took a leave of absence and was later placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation.
Yesterday, Chichester police Chief Patrick Clarke said the sheriff’s investigation report, which included several interviews, had been returned to the town and was being picked over by the town’s attorney.
The town’s attorney will determine if any of the allegations, while not meriting charges from the county attorney’s office, show that Vien violated local personnel policies.
“It’s my understanding that there (are violations),” Clarke said. “I’m not sure about the frequency and seriousness of them.”
Vien said yesterday that he intends to be reinstated as chief.
“My intentions are to go back to the way it was,” Vien said. “Whether they want to do that, I don’t know.”
Chichester has a volunteer fire department, and the chief receives an annual stipend of about $5,600, former selectman Stephen MacCleery said. MacCleery, who was chairman of the board when Vien stepped down, has also said Vien should be reinstated since the county decided not to charge him.
But Alan Quimby, the deputy fire chief who took over in Vien’s absence, has said that some members of the department will likely be concerned about Vien’s return and the selectmen should have a “heart- to-heart” with the fire department before deciding on whether to reinstate Vien.
DeBold said the selectmen don’t want their decision on reinstating Vien to “drag on” much longer.
“We hope to put this behind us in a few weeks,” he said.
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