Stephen Donches forced out at National Museum of Industrial History

Stephen Donches, who has managed the day-to-day operations of the National Museum of Industrial History for the past decade, was forced to resign from the non-profit organization Wednesday.

L. Charles Marcon, the organization's interim president and CEO, said Wednesday will be Donches' final day as an employee with museum. Donches served as president and CEO since 2002 before stepping down to an untitled position in May.

Donches and the museum have been under intense scrutiny since 2012 when a Northampton County grand jury began investigating the museum, which was supposed to open in the late 1990s. The grand jury report released in January 2014 found that over a 12-year period, Donches collected $2.4 million in benefits and salary during a time when the museum spent between $2.5 and $3 million on renovating its future home.

While the grand jury investigation found no criminal wrongdoing, it called on Donches to resign or be terminated. The case was turned over to review with the attorney general's office, which has not released a statement since taking the case. However, Marcon said Donches' departure was part of the settlement it hopes to reach with state investigators.

"We would prefer that he would stay until the museum opens, but we've made that commitment to the attorney general," Marcon said....