Former Otis police Chief Roberta Sarnacki’s settlement amounted to $62,500. Here’s how it stacks up

Former Otis police Chief Roberta Sarnacki has settled a whistleblower lawsuit she filed against the town.

EAGLE FILE PHOTO

OTIS — Former police Chief Roberta Sarnacki received a $62,500 settlement from the town following her whistleblower lawsuit that included waiving any rights to reinstatement.

Under the six-page settlement agreement reached last October, Sarnacki may not apply for any job in the Town of Otis or its police department for five years.

The Berkshire Eagle obtained a copy of the settlement agreement through a request under the Freedom of Information Act.

Sarnacki sued the town in Berkshire Superior Court for illegally discharging her and for unlawful retaliation on Jan. 14, 2020. Sarnacki served as part-time police chief in Otis from Aug. 13, 2009, to June 30, 2018.

She alleged in her lawsuit that then-Select Board Chair William Hiller tried to “unlawfully bribe and influence” her “with a corrupt purpose and purely for private gain” in connection with a police matter in which Hiller had a personal interest. 

Sarnacki alleged in the lawsuit that her non-reappointment constituted retaliation in two ways: for disclosing to the Attorney General’s Office alleged violations of the open meeting law and for providing information about the violations.

The Massachusetts whistleblower law allows for triple damages on lost wages, benefits and other remuneration, and interest.

In Sarnacki’s whistleblower claim, triple damages were estimated at exceeding $175,000 and attorney fees were placed at $25,000. She calculated her total loss at $49,621, including $45,785 in wage and benefits, $3,151 in unpaid benefits, and $685 in unreimbursed phone charges. Statutory interest was calculated at about $17,000.

The town’s payment included the following breakdown:

• $35,000 in lost wages;

• $10,815 in whistleblower and consequential damages;

• $685 in expense reimbursement;

• $16,000 in prejudgment interest.

The settlement includes a section on confidentiality, barring Sarnacki from publicizing or disclosing the terms of the agreement or the amount of the payment other than to her “spouse, accountants, financial advisors and attorneys.”

It also states, “Upon inquiry regarding the Litigation, Sarnacki shall state only that, “The matter has been resolved and I am satisfied.'”

The settlement states that the town, known as the releasee, “has denied all of Sarnacki’s claims and allegations.” It also “releases and forever discharges” the town from a laundry list of claims under both Massachusetts General Laws, federal civil rights and federal employment laws.

Sarnacki signed the agreement Oct. 12, 2022. It was witnessed by David Sarnacki. Brandi Page, town administrator, signed the agreement for the town. Lyn O’Brien, town clerk, witnessed the signature.

In June 2018, the Select Board voted not to reappoint Sarnacki, giving her less than a month’s notice. Her contract specified one year’s notice of non-reappointment. At the time, Sarnacki said she believed the move stemmed from her decision to file charges against a juvenile and the youth’s father.

The dispute with Hiller began in the summer of 2017, when a juvenile, who was related to a well-known Otis family, led Officer Chip Whiting on a chase before ditching his motorcycle in a barn, Sarnacki told The Eagle in 2017.

She said the boy’s father returned to the barn later to retrieve the motorcycle.

After a witness came forward and identified the teenager as Jack O’Brien, officers tried to speak to the family but received no cooperation. Eventually, the department moved to file charges in Southern Berkshire District Court, which prompted Hiller to call Sarnacki several times requesting her not to do so, she said.

Hiller had both personal and business connections to the O’Briens, according to legal filings, and he asked Sarnacki to drop the charges “in exchange for the juvenile’s family agreeing not to sue [her].”

She filed complaints with the State Ethics Commission pertaining to Hiller’s actions. No public decisions have been filed, and a spokesman for the State Ethics Commission could not confirm or deny whether a complaint was received.

Sarnacki also filed complaints, first with the Otis Select Board, then with the Division of Open Government at the state Attorney General’s Office, alleging that the Otis Select Board violated the open meeting law.

Select Board members voted not to renew Sarnacki’s contract for reasons unrelated to the whistleblower claim, according to a joint pretrial memorandum. Specifically, “for non-retaliatory reasons including responding to public complaints, a belief that it was time for a change in leadership of the police, and the belief by one Selectboard member that the Plaintiff had allowed his foster children to be shown in the media, endangering their placement with him.”

Immediately following her non-reappointment, Sarnacki took a position as Blandford police chief for a few months. She currently teaches full-time at Mount Everett Regional High School in Sheffield, which she did when she was police chief in Otis, as well.