NORTH ATTLEBORO -- The lawyer for a veteran park department employee accused of stealing zoo proceeds said Tuesday the accusations may have been the result of differences between his client and her boss.

`` I suspect this is the result of a squabble between the park and recreation director and her,'' Taunton lawyer Francis O'Boy said of the accusations against Debra Hamilton.

Hamilton, 36, the head zoo keeper at World War I Memorial Park, pleaded innocent Tuesday in Attleboro District Court to larceny charges.

She has been suspended by the park and recreation commission without pay and is free without bail. She left the court with her husband, Richard, without answering questions from a reporter.

O'Boy would not be specific about what differences Hamilton may have had with Park and Recreation Director Steven Carvalho. Carvalho declined comment on the case and O'Boy's assertions Tuesday.

Hamilton, the daughter of former selectman and park and recreation commission member Thomas Simms, has worked for the town for 18 years.

Simms and Carvalho had a history of conflict when Simms was on the park commission.

Town officials have been tight-lipped about the case since Hamilton's arrest two weeks ago.

Her suspension from her job is indefinite, pending the outcome of the criminal case.

The Sun Chronicle obtained, under public records law, a copy of the draft minutes from the park commission's meeting last week to learn of the development.

When asked about his client's alleged admissions to police to stealing money from zoo operations, including a goat breeding operation, O'Boy said any comments Hamilton made were the result of a police interrogation.

`` I want to see what the commonwealth has for evidence,'' O'Boy said, explaining that he has not yet seen a police videotape investigators made of the interrogation.

The defense lawyer also alleged record keeping for the park and recreation department is lax. He said it was common practice for employees to be given cash to make purchases for the department.

He defended Hamilton, a former North Attleboro resident who now lives in Blackstone, calling her a `` hard-working individual'' whose work was valued by the town. But a police report filed with court documents in Attleboro District Court tells another story.

Hamilton allegedly admitted to pocketing an estimated $1,000 from the sale of five goats `` over the years'' because she felt she was being treated unfairly and was not being compensated for time she worked, according to the report.

She is also accused of stealing two trees that were supposed to be planted in town for Memorial Day, according to the police report.

She also allegedly admitted to stealing about $700 from a Strut Your Mutt fundraiser in 2005 and $18 from grain feeder and soda machine proceeds but has not been charged, according to the police report.

Those allegations remain under police investigation.

Town officials and police are trying to determine the exact amount of the alleged thefts.

In addition to larceny charges, Hamilton also faces a weapons violation for a handgun found in her desk at her office. She allegedly told police the gun belonged to her father.

She is due back in court Oct. 19 for a pretrial hearing.