East Orange, NJ fire chief returns to Helm after harassment lawsuits

East Orange Fire Chief Andre Williams was reinstated Tuesday morning, a little more than three years after he was fired amid complaints of harassment, intimidation and discrimination, officials said.

Williams was suspended with pay on December 6, 2021. after a group of firefighters alleged the chief denied them a promotion and intimidated them with threats of retaliation.

The suspension came shortly after a letter from the local firefighter unions reached city officials and the media, leading to several published reports.

The East Orange City Council held a special meeting Saturday in which they voted 10-0 to reinstate Williams as chairman, according to Connie Jackson, city spokeswoman.

Saturday’s special meeting and voting took place after an investigation by the Essex County Prosecutor’s Office, and the following months of closed administrative hearings, according to Anthony Iacullo, Fr Mandelbaum Barrettthe Roseland law firm representing Williams.

Public records show Williams was making an annual salary of $153,700 at the time of his suspension. Iacullo said Williams will be reinstated along with any pay raises he may have been entitled to during his suspension.

The prosecutor’s office’s investigation in 2021 was triggered by a firefighter’s complaint to the city’s police department, officials said during the suspension.

A few months before he was suspended, firefighters complained about Williams, including once in a nine-page letter addressed to Mayor Ted R. Green in which the presidents of two firefighter unions laid out the grievances of 11 members of the 200-person paid fire department.

Fire officials said the letter contained a number of allegations, some of which had already been reported to the city’s human resources department.

According to the letter, one firefighter, who was in a same-sex relationship and took a leave of absence to serve in the U.S. Army, was singled out for her sexuality and criticized by Williams because of her military service.

“She needs to do more firefighter work and less military work so all her problems can go away,” the letter quoted Williams as saying.

The two firefighters claimed that Williams resisted their advances. One alleged that Williams brought administrative charges against him to block his promotion. Another said Williams, who is black, resisted his promotion, saying he would not promote white firefighters.

The white firefighter was eventually promoted but later harassed, including being forced to buy a ticket to a promotional event as “indirect payment,” the letter alleges.

Another firefighter was persuaded to drop the complaint against Williams in exchange for the charges against him being dropped. However, the charges remained and his wages were garnished for more than $2,000, the letter said.

According to the letter, a firefighter who raised concerns about a rodent infestation was transferred to a busier unit after Williams saw a photo of an unsent email about the problem.

Williams’ attorney on Tuesday called all the allegations against the chief baseless.

“We believe this (reinstatement) will forever end the injustice that Chief Williams has suffered over the past three years in his fight to prove his innocence,” Iacullo said.