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Friday, Jan. 21, 2005
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Union City launches personnel investigationBy Ben Nelms Union City council members voted unanimously Jan. 18 to have an outside investigation conducted on the circumstances relating to a recent incident between the city administrator Alan Grindstaff and retired city clerk Barbara Steward. Some board members believed the incident might result in litigation. Though the specifics of the incident were not mentioned, the discussion that led to the decision to conduct an investigation originated with questions and comments from Atlanta Regional Commission Director of Communications Tony Landers, who had offered to conduct the investigation at no charge to the city. He began by asking whether the board wanted the matter discussed in open session or executive session since it involved a pending personnel matter with possible disciplinary action implications. City attorney Dennis Davenport responded, saying that the circumstances at hand would be better discussed in open session. Fact finding is for open session, Davenport said. I would advise you to keep it open at this point. Asked by Mayor Ralph Moore for their input, each board agreed that the proceedings should be open. Landers briefed the council on possible complications that can arise from investigations involving personnel. Determining what actually happened between the two employees can be problematic, he said. His statements reflected the positions of the council, who stated on several occasions during the meeting that they had received only secondhand information relating to the incident. Landers responded to what he said was an earlier suggestion by an unnamed council member that Grindstaff and Steward be asked to take a polygraph. He said the board should consider their position if one of the parties declines to be polygrahed, if the results brings into question the truthfulness of the individual and what actions by the board, if any, would be appropriate based on the polygraph results. I think the council wants to discover what actually happened, but only two people know what happened and their stories will likely be different, Landers said. The city clerk and city administrator are positions of trust, especially the city administrator. If something leads you to conclude that youve lost confidence, what could a lie detector test tell you that you didnt already know? During the discussion that followed, council member Shirley Jackson mirrored an earlier statement by council member Alisa King, calling for a relevant investigation of the incident to help the council obtain the information they need relating to the incident. I want to have an open mind when all this comes down, said Jackson. Council members Helen Turner and Barbara Bohanon expressed their support of Landers to conduct the investigation, citing the boards need for the best possible accounting of the incident. I feel that were going to be taken into court by either one or both, said Bohanon. So it behooves us to have an outside party do the investigation. Council members also asked that all relevant information, including any court documents, be included in Landers report. Landers told the council his investigation should require only a numbers of days to complete. Once completed, the council will meet to hear the findings. Near the end of discussion, Turner said she hoped Landers investigation would help bring closure to the matter. It needs to be over so the city can move forward,she said. Human Resources Director Ski Saxby is currently serving as interim city administrator and Ann Lippmann is serving as interim city clerk. Though retired, Steward does provide fill-in work for city, said Saxby. |
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Copyright 2004-Fayette Publishing, Inc. |