MANCHESTER – Trial is set to start in Septem­ber in the case of for­mer Amherst Emergency Medical Services director Brian Gleason, who is fac­ing a felony theft charge for allegedly using a town credit card for personal purchases over a period of two years.

Gleason, 54, of 8 Tyler Drive in Goffstown, was indicted in December 2014 on the single count of theft by unauthorized taking. According to the indictment, Gleason "did obtain or exercise un­authorized control over the property of another … when he used a Town of Amherst credit card to purchase unauthorized items for personal use."

Gleason’s trial is sched­uled to start Monday, Sept. 14, with jury selection, according to documents filed in the Manchester court. The selection pro­cess typically takes 1-2 days, followed by lawyers’ opening statements.

Gleason, who resigned as EMS director in early August 2014, wasn’t tied to any wrongdoing until sev­eral months later, town of­ficials said at the time.

Suspicions were first

raised in November 2014, when a review of town affairs revealed "things that didn’t look to be in or­der," Board of Se­lectmen chairman Dwight Brew said at the time.

S e l e c t m e n turned over their findings to police, who launched an investigation that led to Gleason’s indictment.

The EMS director posi­tion has remained vacant since Gleason’s resigna­tion. Matt Conley, a vet­eran firefighter who was named Fire Chief in mid- June after serving in an acting capacity for more than a year, has also been serving as acting EMS di­rector since Gleason’s de­parture.

Gleason has been free on $5,000 personal recog­nizance bail since he was charged. He is ordered to have no contact with any town EMS personnel, ex­cept in the case of an emergency, according to docu­ments.

The nature of the purchases Gleason allegedly made with the town credit card aren’t specified, but the indict­ment states they occurred between July 2011 and July 2013 and totaled in excess of $1,500.

The charge, a Class A felony, is punishable by a term of 7-15 years in State Prison and up to a $4,000 fine.

Dean Shalhoup can be reached at 594-6443.