Sid Thompson, the chairman of Oregon’s parole board, resigned this week after an inmate tipped off the governor’s office that Thompson may not have disclosed past bankruptcies on his application for the job as required.

Thompson was “given the option to resign and did so” after the state investigated whether he had made the financial disclosure on his application, a spokeswoman for Gov. Kate Brown said Thursday.

Thompson said he and the governor’s office reached a “mutual agreement” regarding his resignation from the job, which pays an annual salary of $135,756. He declined to comment on why he failed to make the disclosure.

Thompson decided to resign in February; his resignation took effect Tuesday.

Thompson has served on the Oregon Board of Parole and Post-Prison Supervision for six years; his current term was set to expire in 2021. One of the four-member board’s main duties is to determine if and when inmates sentenced as “dangerous offenders” or for murder should be released from prison if they are eligible for parole.

Thompson said he was troubled that an inmate had produced a detailed examination of his background.

“The fact that this inmate had this information on me brought some very concerning personal safety considerations into play,” he said.

Last fall, Jacob Barrett, 44, wrote a 13-page letter to Brown, alleging among other things that Thompson may not have revealed bankruptcy information on his application. In his letter, he said he didn’t have access to Thompson’s application but noted that applicants for board appointments are asked if they’ve filed for bankruptcy.

Barrett asked the governor to investigate his claims and, depending on the findings, remove Thompson from the board. The inmate suggested he plans to investigate other board members as well.

He said prisoners should not undergo scrutiny by unqualified board members.

Barrett later filed a public records request for emails and correspondence among state officials pertaining to Thompson’s unannounced departure. The governor released records in response to his request.

Those records show that two other inmates, both convicted killers, also were looking into Thompson. One of them, Jon Johnston, 55, worked with a private investigator who produced a report showing Thompson’s bankruptcies, one in 1988 and the other in 2002.

The inmates investigating Thompson are housed at the Oregon State Correctional Institution, a medium-security prison in Salem.

In January, a state human resources official who reviewed the allegations said in one email that even if the claims were confirmed, they weren’t issues “for which Mr. Thompson would be removed.”

“At this time, Mr. Thompson has worked for the State of Oregon for over a decade successfully which would lend to his suitability for employment and further minimize concerns around his ability to serve,” Jessica N. Knieling, deputy chief human resource officer for the Oregon Department of Administrative Services, wrote in a Jan. 28 email to her supervisor.

However, the records show that nine days later, Heidi Moawad, a Brown aide, sought an in-person meeting with Thompson to discuss “next steps.” Moawad at the time served as Brown’s public safety policy adviser and has since been appointed by the governor to the Multnomah County Circuit Court bench.

The following week, Thompson told a colleague he planned to resign, the emails show.

Thompson said he participated in a Barrett’s parole hearing in 2017. Barrett is convicted of murdering a 75-year-old woman during a store holdup in Klamath County. His request for parole was denied.

Barrett had his latest parole hearing last month; the board’s decision has not yet been made public.

-- Noelle Crombie

503-276-7184

ncrombie@oregonian.com

@noellecrombie

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