Boiling Down Rumors

To contact us Click HERE

Ken O’Brien
Speculation is palpable regarding the executivesession meeting being held tonight by the Southbridge school committeeregarding the future of Superintendent Eric Ely who has been put on administrativeleave regarding a charge of misconduct.
Reporting on rumors is a very tricky business as oneof my blogger colleagues noted in August.

Nevertheless there are competing strains which boildown to two recurring themes. 
First, the allegation of misconduct apparentlyrelates to supposed electronic communications from the Superintendent to afemale, purportedly a teacher, which would amount to sexual harassment. I havebeen accused in unpublished comments of having copies of such communicationsand withholding them. This is not true, and even if I did have them I wouldrequire substantial verification of their authenticity before making thempublic. As such this can be regarded as nothing more than a rumor.
Second is an allegation, which the sameblogger cleverly characterized in a post today, that the Superintendent was“set up” by a conspiracy among his detractors.
I have received numerous comments relating to thesecompeting rumors, none of which I have published. In my opinion they cross theline into being potentially libelous.
What I did do was to turn the content of several ofthese comments over to Mr. Ely, along with the header information I receivedthat may indicate their source. I did indicate to him that I was in no positionto pass judgment on his guilt or innocence. Rather, if he was innocent of theallegations, then his attorney should have access to information of apotentially criminal conspiracy that might exculpate Mr. Ely.
I subsequently learned that an email alleging theconspiracy that was identical to the one I had received had been sent to allschool committee members as well as to Mr. Ely. This would seem to be the basisof my colleague’s “parable” earlier today.
Whether any of these rumors are true is open toinvestigation and certainly to being totally repudiated.  Whatever the case, they are further evidenceof the Byzantine political environment in which we are immersed.
Whatever differences may exist between me and othercommentators, I hope that we share the objective of finding the truth.