New Haven Independent

Smith’s attorney, Lewis Chimes sent a so-called “demand letter” to DaRos, asking the town to discuss a “fair separation package” or run the risk of a lawsuit. Chimes gave the town until May 1, 2008 to do so. DaRos said he sent the letter, dated April 9, to Bill Ryan, the town’s labor lawyer. Ryan is believed to be examining the issues. He did not return a telephone call seeking comment.

The two-page letter, obtained by The Eagle via a Freedom of Information request to the town, asserts that Smith was discharged from his position “in retribution for his political affiliation with the prior administration.”

The Representative Town Meeting (RTM) began an inquiry. So did the Board of Ethics. Smith refused to step down as Democratic leader of the RTM. He said he did not believe there was any conflict of interest in holding both posts.The 2007 election eliminated him from the RTM. In the end, DaRos and the boards were faced with the issue of how to handle leftover deals when a town government changes.

The prior administration, Cheryl Morris, the former first selectman, and Richard Sullivan, former second selectman were not endorsed by the Democratic Party, but ran as Independents and garnered only 6.6 percent of the vote.

Chimes takes the position that DaRos dumped Smith because Smith supported Morris in the election. Smith, he said, also engaged in “several visible public disputes with you” over issues involving eminent domain and Branford’s land trust. Chimes did not elaborate. Reached by telephone, he said he had no comment on the case. Smith could not be reached for comment.

Morris came under heavy fire for appointing Smith, her close political operative, to the position in June, 2007. On Nov. 19th, the evening before DaRos was sworn in as the town’s new First Selectman, Morris gave Smith “a positive evaluation” Chimes wrote, adding Smith “did excellent work during his tenure as Facilities Manager.”

But that is not what DaRos found. “There is definitely a difference in opinion,” he said in an interview.

Smith’s position also carried the title of department head. DaRos said at the time he discharged Smith he had every department “give me a report on how the buildings were taken care of.” Both police and fire officials were unhappy with Smith’s building decisions. It also didn’t help that Smith failed to send snow and ice removal crews to Town Hall and to the Senior Center after a significant storm. As a result pathways were blocked to public buildings causing federal violations.

Chimes maintains that his client was highly qualified for his position. He acknowledged in his letter that there was controversy over the selection, but he believes there was “nothing improper and illegal about it” Chimes says the hiring process involved numerous applications and said Smith “had 25 years of commercial construction experience.”

But Smith’s qualifications were in fact an issue. He had been a headhunter for 12 years. He had also served for 11 years as a sales engineer for different Connecticut companies. And prior to that he had worked as a project manager or sales manager for two scaffolding companies, according to his resume.

Janice Plaziak, the town engineer and Cindy Colville, the former director of human resources who left her job in the aftermath of the Smith appointment, wanted another, more qualified candidate. Morris rejected their recommendations, according to sources familiar with the events.

Smith’s appointment in June had repercussions for him in his election district the following month. In a direct repudiation of the Morris-Smith appointment, not one of the 175 Democratic voters who attended the District 3 local election in Short Beach, where Smith lives, would re-nominate him to the RTM..

Chimes, who is a partner with Garrison, Levin-Epstein, Chimes & Richardson P.C., is well-known for representing individuals in employment cases.

Smith was removed within his probationary period. Chimes said in his letter that DaRos “extended Smith’s probationary period in order to investigate the circumstances of his hiring and evaluate his performance. This was done despite the fact that Smith’s performance had been exemplary. The ‘investigation’ turned up nothing. Despite this, you discharged Smith on December 28, 2007.”

Chimes claims that Smith was discharged “in retribution for his political affiliation with the prior administration.” He wrote that a discharge cannot be based “exclusively on his political affiliation” and cited a case a 2005 Second Circuit federal case, “Gronowski V. Spencer.”

In that case, the Second Circuit upheld a verdict in which John D. Spencer, the former Mayor of Yonkers was found to have violated the first amendment rights of Joan Gronowski, the city’s former chief clerk. The jury found that Spencer wrongly terminated her position in retaliation for her work on behalf of a political rival. At the time Gronowski was a high ranking party official.

Gronowski had civil service status and had worked for the city of Yonkers for 30 years when she was dismissed. Smith worked for the town of Branford during a six month probationary period.

DaRos will advertise for the facilities manager position at some point in the future, he said. At the time he dismissed him, DaRos said he was concerned that the hiring process had not worked properly.

The RTM’s administrative services committee investigated the town’s hiring process. After hearing from former first selectmen and others, the committee concluded that Morris did not follow standard operating procedures when she appointed Smith. But the committee’s final vote could not be taken because it lacked a quorum. The Board of Ethics twice dismissed a conflict of interest complaint against Smith, indicating it had unresolved problems between state and local law. The Code is now in the process of being revised.

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