Colleen Hilton 2 York Street

Mayor Westbrook, Maine 04092

chiit0n@westbrook.me.us Phone: (207)591-8110
Fax: (866)405-0776

.ierre R. Bryant
City Administrator
ibrvant@westbrook.me.us

May 21, 2015
To all members of the Westbrook Community

As Mayor, and as a citizen, I expect every Westbrook public official and citizen to treat every
member of the public with respect and dignity. I expect this, not only because it is what every
citizen is owed, but because when we fail to meet this standard, the failure indicates that we must
carefully consider why the events have occurred.

Each of us is human and fallible. We live our lives doing our best and nonetheless making
mistakes. This is true even for the finest of public officials and employees. The question is how
we deal with one another when such mistakes occur.

Let me clearly and unequivocally state that the email sent to me by Bill Baker does not re?ect
the actions or policies of me or my administration and it does not re?ect the Bill Baker who has
contributed so significantly to Westbrook, first as Chief of Police, and then as Assistant City
Administrator for Business and Community Relations. 1 have viewed this communication as I
view all others which do not meet the standard public officials must meet and which citizens
expect as an indication of frustration and irritation on the part of a dedicated, hard-working
municipal employee. My first concern has been to deal with the frustration underlying an
employee?s communication and, to one extent or another; we have virtually always been
successful in dealing with the root causes. When we see a problem, we try to solve it. However,
I am particularly concerned that the eventual public disclosure of this or any similar
communication hurts and unfairly criticizes the members of the Westbrook community discussed
in the communication. For that harm and hurt, I accept full reSponsibility and offer my apology
to all those who were affected and to all those who have been offended.

I also wish to offer some clarification of my response and actions regarding this particular
communication, which I feel may have been misunderstood or misinterpreted. Based on years of
working with Bill, I was initially shocked and perplexed by his communication. The words and
manner in which they were presented were inconsistent with all I knew about Bill Baker his
concern and compassion for others, his commitment and dedication to the City of Westbrook, his
open receptivity to all elements of growth and development for the community and his
unwavering professionalism in even the most difficult circumstances.

I immediately reached out to Bill to learn what could have precipitated these uncharacteristic
words. I found a very good man who was struggling with health issues that he had never

experienced previously, who was greatly disturbed by the recent rash of deadly attacks on police
officers on the country and who had become increasingly frustrated by expression of
dissatisfaction with his work from a few sectors of the community. These factors manifested
themselves in some internal communications, unwritten and written, such as the one sent to me
on February 25, 2015. Having identified the problem, we have been dealing with it through
corrective action. Awareness, counseling and formal training are all components of my response
to employee issues such as this. Regardless of its root causes, any internal or external
communication of this nature by any member of the City Staff or public official is unacceptable
and will be dealt with appropriately. In fact, I am asking City Administrator, Jerre Bryant to
recommend and make available employee training programs on the use of all forms of
communication, including emails and social media. Every one of us can be more civilized and
more sensitive in how we use these technologies.

I again want to restate my sincere apology to those who were mentioned in Bill Baker?s email
and to the entire Westbrook community for this inappropriate and embarrassing incident. lam
recommitting myself and all members of this Administration to work responsively,
professionally and compassionater with all members of our residential and business
communities. I have also attached a recent communication from Bill Baker on this matter.

Sincerely,

Colleen Hilton
Westbrook City Mayor