Brookline will issue an apology to Gerald Alston, the former Brookline firefighter who the town fired after he came forward to report a supervisor had left a voicemail with a racial epithet on it.
Town Meeting members discussed at length whether to issue a formal apology before the vote. Some argued it could hurt the town, which is still facing litigation from Alston.
Newly elected Select Board member Raul Fernandez said enough was enough after a decade of back and forth and offered Alston an apology, although the Select Board had voted not to.
"Mr. Alston, I'm sorry that we let you down," Fernandez said. "I'm sorry that our actions brought you pain and damaged your reputation."
In the end, 111 Town Meeting Members voted in favor of asking the town to issue a formal apology, 66 voted against it, and 11 abstained (52 Town Meeting members were not present or did not plug in their answers).