The department was inundated with threatening emails and phone calls after the ordinance, leading the agency to shut off its phone for weeks, Birnbaum said.

There is no evidence to show Luce sent the department harassing emails, Croninger said.

“Mr. Kelemen’s anger was directed in the wrong spot. I believe he was under a significant amount of pressure and that pressure got to him,” Croninger said. “He took that out on Mr. Luce, and he shouldn’t have.”

Birnbaum called the chief’s conduct “foolish” and done in frustration.

“He regrets doing that. It was wrong on all kinds of fronts,” Birnbaum said. “No one is harder on him than himself.”

The chief did not make a statement during the hearing.

“Mr. Kelemen, your reaction to what happened in your township and your department can best be characterized as juvenile. It is the kind of thing that you expect high school kids to do to get revenge,” the judge told him. “It’s misplaced. It’s aimed at one person who isn’t necessarily the person who is causing these problems, and it’s also a violation of your duty as an officer.”