Ex-Irvington police chief says department restructuring was really retaliation.
IRVINGTON -- The pending split between Irvington and longtime Police Chief Michael Chase is proving less than amicable.
Attorneys for Chase filed suit Jan. 28 against the township, Mayor Anthony Vauss, and recently-installed Public Safety Director Tracy Bowers, claiming $1,000,000 in damages over the legislative maneuverings that led to the elimination of his job.
"The retaliatory nature in which Mr. Chase has been treated has substantially undermined him as a person and as a law enforcement officer with 40-(plus) years of service with the township," said his attorney Joshua Weiner.
Chase's controversial 14-year tenure as Irvington police chief came to an end earlier this month, as the town council re-affirmed a plan to consolidate leadership of the fire and police departments, mirroring recent moves in Newark, Jersey City, and East Orange.
Included in the legislation was an amendment eliminating the police chief position and permanently transferring oversight of the day-to-day operations of the township police department to Bowers.
Chase, a 40-year police veteran, now says the move to eliminate the chief's position was payback for complaints he made about a previous version of the ordinance that he claims illegally usurped the powers of the police chief.
Approved by the council in October, that version of the ordinance granted Bowers authority over the operations of the police department when the police chief was out on vacation.
Chase, who says he's been on "forced" paid vacation since March, claims in court documents that the provision violated state law.
"My personal feelings are that I feel like I'm being retaliated against based on the action taken," Chase said on the night of the council vote. "I came here and told them in good faith that...not that the whole process was wrong, but that this part is wrong."
Reached last week, Mayor Tony Vauss denied Chase's allegations. "This was not retaliation," Vauss said.
"We were creating the department of pubic safety to save the township hundreds of thousands of dollars. We weren't going to have another chief after we did. We aren't doing anything to him."
Vauss also denied the move has any connection to the still unresolved disciplinary charges against Chase, who was suspended in from duty in December 2012 after the Essex County Prosecutor's Office accused him of manipulating a police investigation and misusing department resources.
After 19 months, Mayor Tony Vauss lifted the suspension, a decision he told NJ Advance Media was influenced by the fact that Chase had continued to collect his $154,272 annual salary. His current annual salary stands at $166,020, according to state records.
The disciplinary hearings, which are being conducted by the township, could be resolved sometime within the next month, said a township spokesman.
Chase, who will turn 65 in 2016, faces mandatory retirement. His scheduled retirement date is July 1.
Vernal Coleman can be reached at vcoleman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @vernalcoleman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.