Grand jury: Poor oversight of Lathrop fire chief led to improper spending at Napa retreat
Poor oversight of the Lathrop fire district's former chief by the board of directors allowed tens of thousands of dollars to be improperly spent at a Napa staff retreat, a grand jury found.
Then, the weak oversight policies prevented employees from reporting grievances about the chief to the board, the grand jury said.
"Employees of the District endured a hostile work environment over several years stemming from abuses of power that included harassment, intimidation, financial mismanagement and retaliation," the San Joaquin County Civil Grand Jury report, released late last month, said.
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Retreat 'provided minimal training,' spurred complaints
In February 2021, employees of the Lathrop-Manteca Fire District attended a staff retreat in Napa, according to the report.
The Napa trip "provided minimal training," the report said, but was paid for with state funds intended for training firefighters.
Expenses from the trip included alcohol, recreational activities and personal services and came out to more than $25,000, according to the report.
The chief at the time was Gene Neely. Neely retired in April with full benefits after investigators hired by the board looked into the retreat, the report said.
The grand jury investigation was spurred by complaints to the jury of harassment by the former chief following the retreat, according to the report.
Neely could not be reached for comment.
'Little to no oversight' of fire chief
The improper spending initially went unnoticed by the fire district board of directors, because board ordinance gives the chief "broad authority to make decisions with little to no oversight," according to the report.
Under the ordinance, the chief could spend the state funds without the board's approval, the report found.
"District policies did not require Board approval for the use of (the) funds. Therefore, the funds were used at the sole discretion of the Chief."
Fire district policy also allows the chief to "alter or disregard District policies without approval by the Board," the report said.
"The District does not have a system of checks and balances to thwart financial abuse or malfeasance by the Chief, thus providing opportunity for financial abuse, which occurred in several ways over recent years."
'No member shall make contact with the Board ... without permission of the Fire Chief'
Fire district employees told the grand jury that Neely and other managers harassed and intimidated them in the days following the Napa retreat, the report said.
Several alleged that after they complained about Neely, they were denied pay raises until they signed non-disclosure agreements, according to the report.
Administrative staff also received no overtime pay or fuel reimbursement for the retreat, leaving the district open to labor lawsuits, the report said.
Board ordinance does not provide an avenue for elevating complaints about the chief to the board, the grand jury found.
The ordinance says: "No member shall make contact with the Board of Directors, or an individual Board Member, regarding District Policies, Procedures, or related business without permission of the Fire Chief," according to the report.
Firefighters can submit complaints per an agreement with the district, but administrative staff cannot, the grand jury found.
Recommendations
The grand jury called on the board to create policies that clearly define and limit the authority of the chief — and prevent him or her from unilaterally changing procedures.
The district should also develop a complaint policy for employees, the report said.
Under California law, the board has 90 days from receiving the report to respond to the grand jury's findings. The report was made public on June 23.
Read the grand jury's full findings and recommendations here.
Record reporter Aaron Leathley covers business, housing, and land use. She can be reached at aleathley@recordnet.com or on Twitter @LeathleyAaron. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.
This article originally appeared on The Record: Grand jury: Poor oversight led to improper spending at Lathrop Fire retreat
