STOUGHTON, Mass. — A Stoughton Select Board member said Tuesday that petitions now circulating in town will be used to recall three members of the board, not to bring back Police Chief Donna McNamara. She told residents she was concerned that some people may have been misled about what they signed.

Select Board member Gilda Jakes spoke near the end of the board's Oct. 27 meeting, after a string of residents urged the board to reinstate McNamara and criticized how it has handled her case.

"I'm troubled by the possibility that constituents were misled in signing these petitions," Jakes said. She said she felt responsible for making sure signers understood "that their signatures will be used to recall three members on the select board and not to reinstate Donna McNamara as the police chief in Stoughton." That decision, she said, "will be determined after the investigation is complete."

Jakes said she supports the democratic process "but only when it is fairly and consistently applied." She also said she had recently learned that the town's new elementary school project is one of the reasons for the recall. She noted that she was not on the board when McNamara's last contract extension was approved.

Earlier in the meeting, a resident told the board that "a citizen-led recall effort is moving forward against the select board."

Residents press for answers

McNamara and Town Manager Thomas Calter have been on paid leave since July, when the Select Board ordered an independent investigation into their competing allegations, according to The Boston Globe. McNamara has sued Calter and the town, alleging that he harassed her and tried to force her out because she is a woman, GBH News reported. Calter has called the harassment allegations baseless. He has said McNamara filed her harassment complaint 16 days after she was placed on leave, according to Boston.com.

McNamara recently testified in the federal trial of former Stoughton police officer Matthew Farwell in the death of Sandra Birchmore, NBC Boston reported. The charges against Farwell are allegations, and he is presumed innocent.

One resident who spoke Tuesday asked the board to "act with complete fairness" toward McNamara. She said the chief had testified "to hold the wrongdoing accountable." "Yet instead of being protected for doing the right thing, she is the one who was placed on leave," she said.

Another resident asked when the investigation would end. He said he had heard its cost was approaching $300,000. A third criticized board members for saying little during their own comment time at recent meetings.

Board says report is coming

Board members said they share the frustration. One said the outside investigators have conducted many interviews and are "getting close." The board will call an executive session once it receives their findings, the member said, and the first version will be a draft.

"We are working as fast as we can," a board member said. Another said the board was told at the start that the investigation would take 60 days and apologized that it has taken longer. "We are frustrated too," the member said.

Three board members attended Tuesday's meeting. The board took no action related to McNamara or Calter.