Former Committee on Open Government Executive Director Robert Freeman was fined $15,000 by the state's main ethics and lobbying commission related to allegations he sexually harassed multiple women and misused a state computer, the Joint Commission on Public Ethics announced Wednesday. 

The settlement comes after Freeman, long a trusted and relied-on source for journalists and open government advocates across the state, was fired last year after women accused him of inappropriate behavior. 

A subsequent investigation found Freeman also misused a state-owned computer to view sexual images. 

Freeman acknowledged the misconduct and the misue of the computer, JCOPE said, as part of the settlement.