State prosecutors on Friday charged a former top-level employee at Juneau’s Bartlett Regional Hospital with two felony counts of theft in the first degree.
State troopers arrested Bradley Grigg, formerly the hospital’s chief behavioral health officer, Thursday evening for allegedly stealing more than $100,000 from the city-owned hospital. He participated in the arraignment by video call from Lemon Creek Correctional Center.
Court documents detail two felonies: the first involving more than $25,000 in travel-related reimbursements, the second for more than $25,000 in Amazon purchases.
The felony charges each carry potential jail time of up to 10 years and up to a $100,000 fine. But Superior Court Judge Marianna Carpeneti said that for first-time felonies, the jail time is shorter — up to three years. The state is unaware of previous felonies on Grigg’s record.
District Attorney Jessalyn Gillum said Grigg is accused of stealing from the hospital over several years while in his leadership role at Bartlett, where his annual salary was $180,000.
“His actions primarily took the form of either fraudulent reimbursement requests for travel and accommodations on trips that were never actually taken,” Gillum said. “As well as personal expenses, made through his purchase credit card issued by Bartlett, that, in fact, were not for business purposes.”
Grigg’s arrest followed an investigation by the City and Borough of Juneau.
“We learned about that through an internal whistleblowing process and provided those details to the district attorney for their use,” said Deputy City Manager Robert Barr.
Grigg worked at Bartlett Regional Hospital for four years. He resigned from the hospital last fall, just hours after the resignation and firing of former CEO Rose Lawhorne. Nearly all of the hospital’s senior management left after Lawhorne’s and Grigg’s departure.
Barr says the city and hospital have tightened security on hospital spending “to guard against this sort of alleged activity occurring in the future.”
He said that includes a monthly review of all credit card purchases by leadership and the use of purchase orders rather than credit cards.
Barr would not say at this time if the city will seek damages in civil court.
“We are interested and looking forward to the judicial process playing out as it is designed to do in our court and legal system,” Barr said.
At his arraignment, Grigg lowered his head while prosecution made the case for a $25,000 cash bail. He asked the court for a lower amount.
“I’m not a risk of public safety,” Grigg told Carpeneti. “I’m not a flight risk. There’s no plan, there’s no flight purchased or anything like that in order, that would get me out of town. I probably don’t have a job anymore, but, you know, I do have a life here.”
Carpeneti set Grigg’s bail at $10,000 cash, and he will be under electronic monitoring. He may not visit the hospital, and he’s restricted from contact with several witnesses in the case. He also may not leave the City and Borough of Juneau, and he may not visit the airport, the ferry terminal or any harbors.
Carpeneti entered a “not guilty” plea for Grigg to preserve his rights until he finds an attorney.
