Brooklines police chief was fired from his position Friday after an independent investigation into reports that he sexually harassed multiple women who he worked with, officials said.
The Brookline Select Board unanimously voted to terminate Chief Ashley Gonzalezs employment following a disciplinary hearing. He was sworn into his position June 1 and placed on paid administrative leave only two months later after town officials received separate reports of multiple alleged instances of sexual harassment, prompting an investigation into his alleged behavior, according to a statement from the town.
The review conducted by Comprehensive Investigations and Consulting (CIC), an outside firm hired by the town determined there was sufficient evidence to support the allegations that Gonzalez sexually harassed multiple women who worked in the Brookline Police Department and created a hostile workplace for them in violation of the Town of Brookline Policy Against Discrimination, Sexual Harassment and Retaliation. CIC noted there were multiple admitted, corroborated and sustained claims of sexual harassment, and it recommended that the police chief be fired.Read More: Man accused of spreading X-rated photos across Boston MBTA station
We have a strict zero-tolerance policy against discrimination, sexual harassment and retaliation, and I want to thank the team from Comprehensive Investigations and Consulting for a thorough review of these incidents, Select Board Chair Heather Hamilton said in the towns statement.
According to the redacted version of the 130-page investigative report, between July 19 and 29, the Brookline Human Resources Department received four emails reporting that Gonzalez made sexually harassing statements in the workplace and online. These emails prompted the town to hire CIC, a Quincy-based organization that carries out unbiased investigations on behalf of local and state agencies, to conduct an independent inquiry into Gonzalezs alleged conduct.
The report goes on to detail how Gonzalez allegedly made inappropriate and sexually suggestive comments in person and over LinkedIn and text. In one instance, during a meeting on June 8, 2022, CIC wrote, Gonzalez allegedly made a sexually suggestive comment to a police department employee that made her feel humiliated, undermined, horrified, embarrassed, and lost.Read More: Boston police call off search for van in suspected kidnapping, call incident a misunderstanding
After the June 8, 2022 [meeting], [the employee] stated the she was humiliated and embarrassed. She stated that she attempted to stay away from Chief Gonzalez as much as possible. [She] stated that the statements made to her by Chief Gonzalez caused her to feel nervous, anxious, and uncomfortable. She added the way that he looked at her and spoke to her was very degrading and creepy, " the report says.
Gonzalez was appointed by the town to the position of chief of police on April 6 after working in law enforcement for more than 30 years. He served in the Norwalk, Connecticut Police Department for 29 years before retiring as its deputy chief and was later hired as the police chief for the Austin, Texas Independent School District Police Department, where he spent four years before being hired by the town of Brookline.
Jennifer Paster is currently serving as acting chief of police in Brookline, according to the town.Read More: They picked the wrong person: 91-year-old Jean McGuire, champion of equality, remains upbeat after attack