By Julie Manganis
Staff writer
July 03, 2008 06:33 am SALEM — The man blamed for much of the city of Salem's current fiscal crisis also faced his own financial crisis, court records show. Bruce Guy, the city's former finance director and School Department business manager, has been granted personal bankruptcy protection, less than a year after losing his job with the city amid questions about a nearly $6 million school budget deficit. Guy filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy in March; on Tuesday, a federal Bankruptcy Court judge granted Guy a complete discharge from his debts, including nearly $85,000 in credit card debt among 35 different credit cards and lenders listed on his bankruptcy petition. He also owed money toward leases on an Audi and a BMW. The discharge wipes out those debts and bars creditors from collecting on them. He also listed $41,000 in student loan debt and $10,500 in back taxes. Student loan and tax debts are generally not allowed to be discharged. The discharge was granted after Guy — who has an MBA and a bachelor's degree in accounting, taught finance at Salem State, and once ran a credit union — and his wife attended a court-ordered debtor-education program in May and a credit counseling program in January. The discharge will allow Guy and his wife, Patricia, to keep their home on Dodge Street in Beverly, as well as a 2004 Jeep Cherokee, and will also allow him to keep his city of Salem pension, as well as a small pension from Salem State College, where he has taught finance part time since 1993. His wife, who is a school secretary in Beverly, will also get to keep her pension when she retires. Such exemptions are allowed under bankruptcy law. The court found that without considering the house, the Jeep or the couple's pensions, their remaining assets — just a few hundred dollars' worth of clothing, jewelry and furniture in spite of the couple's large credit card debt — wasn't enough to liquidate to try to repay any of the creditors. The documents on file with the Bankruptcy Court show that the couple had just $170 left in their bank accounts when they filed in March. The documents also show that Guy, who earned $90,000 a year from the city, has not worked since the School Committee voted not to renew his contract last summer. He collected $600 a week in unemployment. His wife has continued working for the Beverly School Department, but her net income of slightly less than $2,000 a month and Guy's unemployment income of $2,400 a month wasn't enough to pay their expenses, including their $2,500-a-month mortgage. The bankruptcy petition makes reference to a "potential claim for wrongful discrimination against former employers" and goes on to list the city of Salem, the state and, for an unknown reason, The Salem News, where Guy has never worked. However, it goes on to state that Guy has not hired an attorney and is not pursuing any claims. The School Department deficit led to a request for Salem police to investigate whether there was any criminal wrongdoing that led to the $5.8 million deficit. The police turned that request over to the Essex County District Attorney's Office. Spokesman Steve O'Connell said it is the policy of his office not to confirm or deny the existence of any investigation. Guy has not been charged with any wrongdoing. Mayor Kim Driscoll declined to comment on the situation. Richard Askenase, the couple's bankruptcy attorney, could not be reached for comment yesterday. A message left at the couple's home was not returned. Staff writers Amanda McGregor and Chris Cassidy contributed to this report.
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