By Bridget Turcotte
SAUGUS — The Saugus school district is facing a fishy situation.
Superintendent David DeRuosi said Arthur Grabowski verbally resigned from his position as a member of the school committee, but Grabowski denies the claims.
“Mr. Grabowski came in Friday morning, turned in his computer and verbally said he’s not serving anymore,” DeRuosi said. “I wanted him to be able to get back to me. I’ve had many people, in a moment of frustration, make a statement. People get upset and people get frustrated.”
The confusion unfolded just over a week after Grabowski learned he would stand trial on felony charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon on Dec. 6. The charges stem from an incident that occurred at the Saugus Senior Center in May.
Grabowski, 67, is accused of hitting 73-year-old Martin Graney with a bag of frozen fish patties during an argument at a veterans food drive in May, according to reports obtained from Lynn District Court.
Graney told police Grabowski asked him to “take this outside” and walked out the door. Once outside, Grabowski reportedly spun around and struck Graney with the fish, according to the documents.
Grabowski, who was not on scene when police responded, said that the two men began to argue and when he attempted to leave, “Marty” was blocking him. Graney reportedly told Grabowski he wanted to go outside, and when they did “Marty began to hit Grabowski from behind,” according to the report.
“Grabowski said both hands were full of food, and he hit Marty because he was blocking him,” according to the report.
Grabowski could face a penalty of up to 10 years in state prison, up to two-and-a-half years in jail or a fine of up to $1,000.
DeRuosi asked Grabowski to take the weekend to think about his decision to resign and report back on Monday. By Wednesday, DeRuosi said he had not heard back. Chairwoman Jeannie Meredith said phone calls to Grabowski were not returned.
Grabowski maintains that he has not resigned and has no intention to.
“This is typical Saugus politics for you,” he said. “I’m outraged that this situation is the way it is. I was elected and I will continue to do my duties.”
He added that he sent an email to the other committee members stating that he has not given up his position.
To formally resign, Grabowski would need to file a written resignation with the town clerk. The clerk would then declare the person with the next highest number of votes as a school committee member, provided the candidate received a minimum of 1,000 votes, said Town Counsel John Vasapolli.
Judith Worthley trailed Grabowski in the November election with 1,761 votes.
But Grabowski and staff in the clerk’s office reported that nothing has been filed.
Vasapolli said an elected official cannot be forced out of his or her seat by other committee members. He also cannot be terminated because he is facing charges.
Meredith said her biggest concern is maintaining stability on a board that already has enough to focus on.
“We don’t want to have interruptions to the important work that we’re doing,” she said. “Mr. Grabowski’s resignation has caused confusion and is a serious concern for the committee. We can’t leave a vacant seat on the school committee.”
Bridget Turcotte can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @BridgetTurcotte.
