STOUGHTON, Mass. — Just two days after Stoughton Police Chief Donna McNamara filed a formal harassment complaint against Town Manager Thomas Calter, town officials announced that an acting police chief will take over leadership of the department.
McNamara says she did not voluntarily step away from her position.
The complaint, filed Monday, accuses Calter of engaging in gossip, attempting to damage McNamara’s reputation, and repeatedly calling and texting her personal cellphone over the past two weeks.
McNamara’s attorney, Leah Barrault, alleges the actions were part of an effort to push the chief out of her job.
“Never in my career have I seen such a nakedly transparent attempt to smear a good and honest police chief out of her job. The time has come for these types of actions to end in Stoughton,” Barrault said in a statement.
Barrault told Boston 25 News that McNamara was recently called into a meeting with Calter and members of the town council, where she was told she could either resign or face termination.
“It’s a continuation of him trying to make her leave, even though she’s never had discipline or complaints against her,” Barrault said. “The text messages were just a continuation of that pattern of statements.”
McNamara has led the Stoughton Police Department for nearly a decade.
When Boston 25 News asked why McNamara is no longer leading the department, town officials declined to comment, citing personnel matters.
Boston 25 News has also reached out to Town Manager Calter for a response to the allegations. As of Wednesday evening, he had not responded.
The Stoughton Police Department has faced significant public scrutiny in recent years following allegations against former officer Matthew Farwell in the high-profile Sandra Birchmore case.
Federal prosecutors allege Farwell murdered Birchmore, a pregnant woman, in 2021 and staged her death to appear as a suicide. Investigators have also alleged that Farwell began a sexual relationship with Birchmore while she was underage.
McNamara ordered an internal affairs investigation into the case in 2022 as questions mounted over the department’s handling of officers connected to Birchmore.
Birchmore was pregnant at the time of her death. However, DNA testing later determined that Farwell was not the father of her unborn child.
Farwell has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. His federal murder trial is currently scheduled to begin in October.
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