City Worker Allegedly Shut Down Police Department Website Over Pay Dispute

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A former employee for the city of Newton, Massachusetts, is accused of taking down the website for the city's police departmentSteven Smith, 73, who was the department's information technology director, replaced the website with a message telling visitors to contact Newton Mayor Ruthanne Fuller to restore it.

According to The Boston GlobeSmith took down the website because he claims the city owes him $137,000. The city disputed his claims, arguing he was not owed the money because he was not a member of the police union.

The website has been down since late June, and Smith locked out other employees from restoring it, forcing city officials to scramble to build a new site for the police department. The old website is no longer active.

Officials have launched an investigation into the matter. It is unclear if Smith is facing criminal charges, who has denied he did anything wrong.

"All actions I took in my role were done with the approval and authorization of the Newton police chief at the time. I am disheartened by the city's representation of the facts in this matter. I will continue to work with the city to resolve any outstanding issues," Smith told the Globe.


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