BOSTON — Fired Methuen police Chief Joseph Solomon's Civil Service hearing opened this morning. The public will be allowed to attend the proceeding, which will be held throughout the rest of the month.
Solomon is appealing his firing at the hands of Mayor William Manzi and a three-day suspension he served last year.
Before today, it was unclear whether the hearing would be public or private. The Civil Service Commission's disciplinary hearings are private, unless at least one side in the case requests that it be public.
The Eagle-Tribune asked Methuen's attorneys and Solomon's attorneys to make the hearing public, and they agreed. Only lawyers attended today's portion of the hearing, and they primarily went through procedural matters. No witnesses testified, and today's segment finished before noon.
The hearing will reconvene next Tuesday at 2 p.m. Manzi could end up testifying next week, attorneys said.
By Oct. 30, lawyers will know whether the case needs to go longer.
Civil Service Commissioner Paul Stein will hear the appeal and make a ruling. The ruling might not be released until weeks after the hearing is closed.
