Haverhill Harbormaster Michael J. Vets is back on the job after he was cleared by a Haverhill District Court judge of three domestic violence-related charges.
Judge Mary F. McCabe found Vets not guilty of two counts of assault and battery on a family and/or household member and strangulation or suffocation. He was accused of the charges last February that a Haverhill Police report said was related to alleged incidents during May and September of last year at his home.
Mayor James J. Fiorentini said Tuesday Vets went back to work this past weekend. He was placed on paid administrative leave following his arraignment. The leave was described at the time as “the city’s standard protocol when charged with a crime.”
Fire Chief Robert M. O’Brien, who is the harbormaster’s superior, assigned other members of his department fill in during Vets’ absence, telling WHAV earlier, “We always respond in tandem. Whenever there is an emergency, we always call out and the fire department responds and the harbormaster responds if we require him to.”