Wilton Fireman Facing Felony Charges Placed on Leave

Michael Michelson, , was placed on administrative leave by the Wilton Fire Department last Wednesday.

Michelsen, a 59 year-old career firefighter and New Canaan resident, had amassed about 49 weeks of paid sick leave and used them shortly after his arrest in Feb. of 2011. He  as a lieutenant of the  on May 19 but was placed on leave just 18 days later, according to an email correspondence with Fire Chief Paul Milositz.

Michelsen “was placed on administrative leave on June 6 pending completion of the departmental investigation” of Michelsen’s “conduct as it relates to the pending criminal charges and his employment with the town,” wrote Milositz.

A follow-up email inquiring if the leave is paid was not returned. 

Last year, New Canaan Police had said that an 81 year-old Greenwich woman who was suffering from “‘cognitive issues’” allegedly wrote the accused couple checks totalling n between 2005 and 2008, but since the statute of limitations on larceny is only five years, the accused can only be charged with “."

 as a front and used the money to furnish a home in Block Island, the article states.

New Canaan Police arrested Michelsen and his wife, Paula Halloran, now age 40, of New Canaan, on Feb. 25 of 2011. They both face class B felony charges of first degree larceny and first degree conspiracy to commit larceny.

A jury trial is set  over seven years from now for November 11, 2019, according to Jud.ct.gov.  They have both pleaded ‘not guilty.’

Halloran and Michelsen are scheduled to attend a hearing on Tuesday, June 26, at the Stamford/Norwalk Judicidal Courthouse in relation to this case, according to Connecticut SAVIN’s website*

*A special thanks to commenter for this news tip