After a heated discussion around transparency and respect last meeting, the Select Board again discussed a code of conduct and social media policies Tuesday night.

“The code of conduct is one of the most disappointing policies that we have on this board,” Select Board Member Mary Ellen Fletcher said. “Since I sat on this board, I don’t think that I experienced more disrespect and just pathetic behavior in any environment I’ve ever been on, and I’m very tired of it.”

Fletcher said that the last Select Board meeting was her “breaking point.” 

There were multiple occurrences when voices were raised and people were accused of different actions during the July 22 Select Board meeting. The incident that Fletcher referred to on Tuesday, August 5 went back to whether she asked a town employee to pay a bill for a second legal opinion regarding the Pine St. VFW Post property prior to a special Town Meeting. Select Board Member David Grishman suggested that an employee resigned and was “addressed by Mary Ellen to pay an unauthorized legal fee.”

“It was a lie,” Fletcher said. “For three and a half years, I have sat here, and I have listened to people take shots at me or other people that are not true. It’s almost like a free for all. You just come out and say it, and it becomes fodder.” 

Fletcher showed a written document that “says I did not” ask an accountant to pay a bill.

“That’s how far I had to go to clear my own name, and that is unacceptable, so if we’re going to sit here and do a code of conduct, then we better make sure that we’re going to hold people accountable,” Fletcher said. “Mr. Grishman, I seriously feel that this board needs to hold you accountable for your actions. I think what you did was wrong.”

There was originally an item on the Select Board’s agenda to censure Grishman. That was removed in an updated version of the agenda Tuesday morning.

“It’s not even about holding people to (the code of conduct). It’s just about basic decency,” Fletcher said. “That is something we lack. I have no answers for that. I can’t make someone be a decent human being, return a phone call or stop throwing mud at each other.” 

Fletcher said beyond her concerns she is “fine with everything changed” with the code of conduct. The current code of conduct has been in place since 2022.

Grishman did not respond directly to Fletcher, but he instead addressed other sections of the policy.

“In the case of inappropriate conduct by a Select Board member, reports should be made to the chair of the Select Board,” Grishman read. “In the case of a complaint against a member of the Select Board, the chair of the Select Board shall determine the next course of action.”

Grishman asked what would happen if concerns were raised against the chair and if there would be a “professional staff member or independent third party that should be evaluating this for reporting and for investigations.” 

Select Board Member Danielle Leonard, who had helped to revise the conduct language, suggested that it’s not appropriate to put a town staff member in that position, but she did agree that there should be another guardrail in place.

“I think KP Law’s advice is as you go deeper into being more specific, it is a little bit more dangerous because you may be putting yourself in positions where you can’t actually follow that process or procedure,” Select Board Chair Katie Phelan said, noting that law supersedes any code of conduct.

The Select Board also reviewed a social media policy to regulate town and personal postings, with issues of cyber bullying and free speech discussed. There is currently not one in place. 

Leonard shared that “in 2025 this is the norm” to have a policy. She added that “considering how heavily this town seems to rely on social media for information,” rules would be helpful.

“We really should have some type of guidelines, some boundaries set…We first started this discussion three or four months ago, when we were redoing the handbook itself,” Leonard said. “Most towns have a social media policy now. Swampscott didn’t. We didn’t even have a handbook. That was years old, so this is kind of common place now.”

Leonard made an initial attempt at revising the language, focusing particularly on the town’s communication. One sentence she added was to “please refrain from making personal comments utilizing town” social media platforms and sites. 

Fletcher said that “all of the changes made sense.” Phelan also said that the guidelines can provide some consistency between town departments and from year-to-year when job responsibilities may be passed along to someone else. 

Fletcher did raise the question of how enforceable the policy is. Phelan also noted that the “more policies we put into place,” the more difficult it becomes “to manage them all.”

“We would have to put into place some repercussions if we fail to meet those standards,” Phelan said, suggesting that the Select Board does not have the same direct consequences an employee may. “Right now, we’re self controlling.”

Select Board Member David Grishman asked to include the definition of “cyber bullying.”

“We are talking about our role and how far we could or could not take things in regards to these particular (sites and pages),” Phelan said, adding that there is a difference between her own personal page and her Select Board Facebook profile, for example. 

Fletcher, who said that she “cannot stand social media and the cowardly hits people take,” said she is cautious of “people’s right to free speech.” Phelan said that this again goes back to personal pages versus town pages. 

“I think we have to be very careful with free speech,” Phelan said. “You can strive for better, but in the end, free speech is very protected and we’re not going to be able to censor people.”

Phelan suggested the group checks out other towns’ policies for both the social media guidelines and the code of conduct.

“We should hold ourselves to a similar accountable standard,” Phelan said.