Hartman Files Lawsuit Against Town, Selectmen

STOUGHTON, MA — Michael Hartman has followed through on a threat to file a lawsuit against the Town if he was unable to perform the duties of the town manager.

The apparently ousted Stoughton town manager has filed charges in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham against the town; the board of selectmen; and individual board members David Sousa, Robert Cohn, and Peter Brown. Hartman is suing for breach of contract, wrongful termination, intentional interference with advantageous relationship, and civil conspiracy, according to court documents.

Hartman alleges that the June 29 vote by the selectmen to appoint Town Accountant William Rowe the interim town manager was illegal and in violation of the town charter, which states that four votes are needed to discharge a town manager.

While the board voted, 3-1, in December to not renew his contract, the board has not held a discharge vote or hearing.

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Hartman, who has been the town manager since 2012, was away visiting his mother in Iowa when the 3-2 vote took place. In court documents, the vote was described as “in direct conflict with the provisions of the Town Charter.”

On June 30, Hartman received noticed from Sousa that his employment with the town was terminated. Later that day, he sent an email to the board and town officials and he objects to the vote and he is the town manager until he is discharged.

On July 14, Hartman returned to Town Hall to find the door to the town manager’s office locked. Unable to get in, he called a locksmith, who was ordered by Rowe to not change the lock. Hartman spent the day working out of a conference room.

Attorneys for Hartman cite the tenures of former town managers Philip Farrington and Mark Stankiewicz as precedent in this case. Both had three-person votes to not renew their employment contracts but served for several years without a written employment contract because the then-sitting boards were unable to obtain four-person vote to discharge the town manager.

Hartman is requesting a jury trial and is looking to be award damages to him, attorney fees. The costs of litigation and any other action the court deems fair.

The board is expected to discuss the lawsuit during their meeting Tuesday night in executive session.

Image: File Photo