Ellsworth council debates censure of Councilor Steven O'Halloran after third‑party probe

City Attorney Tim Pease told the Ellsworth City Council that he had hired a third‑party investigator on March 6 and received a written report on April 7 after employees raised complaints about Councilor Steven O'Halloran.

Pease said the investigator interviewed several employees and concluded the witnesses "do not appear to be overly sensitive. Their concerns appear to be genuine," and that the allegations posed a potential liability risk to the city. He reviewed relevant provisions of the city charter and the Ellsworth Code of Ethics (Ordinance Chapter 40), including the procedures in section 12 for addressing alleged councilor misconduct.

Councilors discussed the options available under section 12, which range from an oral reprimand to a formal sanction. Pease told the council that expulsion procedures under the code were not being considered and that Item One procedures (which allow an informal resolution or a formal sanction adopted by majority vote) applied to the matter before them.

Councilor Steven O'Halloran opened his remarks by saying he had been surprised to learn the executive session had been about him and that he had requested the matter be heard in public. O'Halloran read excerpts attributed to the investigator that included allegations about inflammatory public communications and conduct toward staff, and he denied wrongdoing, saying he had acted for constituents and that he had not directed employees to perform tasks. At one point he said, "If I'm a bank robber, you all need to know it," arguing that residents deserve to see the record and that he pays his own counsel while the city pays its attorney.

Several councilors urged the body to protect staff and the city's legal position. One councilor who read prepared remarks summarized the investigator's findings that employees reported emotional distress, anxiety and fear of retaliation, and said the council needed to censure O'Halloran "to protect the city staff and the city from further liability." Other members emphasized the importance of civility, the limits on council oversight of city operations and the distinction between robust political speech and conduct that interferes with staff's ability to work.

A motion to adopt a drafted formal sanction (censure) was offered, copies of the proposed statement were circulated, and a councilor read the motion aloud. The draft recited the March 6 engagement of an investigator, the April 7 report and that the investigator had conducted recorded interviews with at least five employees; it concluded by ordering that "Stephen O'Halloran is hereby issued a formal sanction" based on the report. The chair called for the vote, but the transcript does not include a recorded tally or an explicit announcement of the motion's final disposition.

Councillors then debated whether to make the investigator's report public. O'Halloran said the document "is about me and I think Mr. and Mrs. Ellsworth have a right to see it," while other councilors and the city attorney cautioned that releasing the full report could reveal identifying details about employees and increase liability; Pease advised the council against releasing the report immediately and said he would provide guidance at the next meeting.

The meeting concluded shortly thereafter with a motion to adjourn.

Next steps: the city attorney said he would provide the council with written guidance on the release/redaction of the investigator's report at the council's next meeting. The transcript does not record whether the drafted censure was formally adopted.