Published Friday, October 4, 2002
in civil lawsuit
Herald Staff Writer
Former Mercer County fiscal director Jeff Swartzbeck filed a lawsuit Monday against seven current and former county employees seeking more than $1 million in lost wages, benefits and damages.
Swartzbeck, of Mercer, alleges he was forced to resign after he was suspended without pay and falsly accused of sexual harassment and other misconduct by a courthouse conspiracy that included county Commissioners Cloyd E. "Gene" Brenneman and Olivia M. Lazor; former Commissioner Brian W. Shipley; county Law Librarian Kim Deniker; former grants and allocations director Roberta Leonard, Swartzbeck's assistant in the fiscal office; Onalee Godfrey, former administrative assistant to Shipley; and former management information systems director Suzanne Hockenberry.
Mercer County and the the board of commissioners are also listed as defendants in the suit filed in Mercer County Common Pleas Court.
The lawsuit alleges slander and libel, civil harassment and conspiracy, and breach of implied contract.
In the lawsuit, Swartzbeck claims he was forced to resign in October 2001, after being placed on unpaid suspension. He was put on paid suspension in September while under investigation for undisclosed reasons.
Brenneman, Shipley and Mrs. Lazor and the others named in the suit leaked information about the investigation they knew to be false, the lawsuit alleges. Swartzbeck claims they told courthouse staff and others he was charged with sexual harassment, budgetary misuse and fraud.
The lawsuit alleges they participated in a conspiracy to get Swartzbeck fired. The plan included "bogus charges of sexual harassment, alleged obstruction of justice, alleged seminar fraud and alleged budgetary errors," according to the lawsuit.
The lawsuit alleges Ms. Leonard, Ms. Deniker, Ms. Godfrey and Ms. Hockenberry made false claims that Swartzbeck sexually harassed them.
The county paid $57,000 in February to the four women to settle sexual harassment charges. County commissioners refused to comment on that suit, but an attorney who represented three of the women said their claims were against more than one county employee.
Swartzbeck's lawsuit claims county officials settled the case without any reasonable investigation and allowed it to appear to the public that he was guilty when they "knew that to be untrue."
According to the lawsuit, Swartzbeck's troubles began when he returned from an extended sick leave in spring 2001. While he was out of the office, the lawsuit alleges Shipley and Ms. Leonard created a "secret credit card file" as part of a plan to cover up Shipley's misuse of a county credit card and "other matters and then tried to have it appear as if (Swartzbeck) was at fault."
Shipley took numerous cash advances on a county credit card issued to him as commissioner. That and the questionable use of a county cell phone prompted Shipley to resign from office last year.
The lawsuit also says Swartzbeck protested the county's "budgetary failures" and commissioners forced his resignation in "retaliation."
Swartzbeck is seeking more than $1 million to compensate for lost wages and benefits from October 2001 until his retirement, compensatory damages and punitive damages. He alleges that because of the actions taken by those named in the suit, he is unable to find a job.
Ms. Deniker declined to comment on the case and referred all questions to her attorney, Richard Peterson of Greenville.
"The only comment I could make at this early stage would be that the defendants are reviewing (the suit) and evaluating their various defenses," Peterson said.
Swartzbeck's attorney, Neal Sanders of Butler, Brenneman, Shipley and Ms. Leonard did not return messages.
Mrs. Lazor offered no comment and Ms. Godfrey and Ms. Hockenberry could not be reached for comment.
You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Amanda Smith-Teutsch at ateutsch@sharonherald.com