MANSFIELD — Richland County Dog Warden Dave Jordan was reportedly terminated in February after he tried to discipline an employee who had just filed for workman’s compensation.
It was the latest in a series of management issues involving the former dog warden, including the unauthorized firing of a different employee in 2015 that led to a federal lawsuit, which Richland County commissioners settled out of court for $150,000.
Richland County Commissioner Tony Vero, chair of the three-member board, declined comment Monday morning on the dog warden issue.
“We continue to have no comment regarding the termination of the county’s former dog warden outside of the (public) records we provided,” Vero said.
Richland Source has learned the decision to terminate Jordan on Feb. 19 came after the dog warden tried to file disciplinary actions against the employee, who filed the workman’s compensation claim.
That separate issue came less than three years after deputy dog warden Robin Crabtree sued commissioners claiming Jordan fired her because of her disability and gender.
In the lawsuit, Crabtree claimed she was an U.S. Air Force veteran who injured her back while serving in Kuwait. She began work at the dog warden’s office in July 2015 and “was able to perform and did successfully perform the duties and responsibilities of the position(s) she held.”
Crabtree requested “reasonable accommodations” from the dog warden, but the defendants “did not engage in an interactive process” with her regarding the issue.
The lawsuit claims defendants fired her on Aug. 13, 2015, “on the basis of her disability and/or the disabilty defendants regarded her as having.”
The lawsuit claimed Jordan wrote, “It is apparent that due to Robins (sic) past back injury and current back pain that this job of Deputy Dog Warden will be more physically demanding than what her back can handle.”
In addition to not accommodating her disability, the lawsuit claimed the defendants treated her differently and adversely compared to males.
The lawsuit also claimed Jordan, while terminating Crabtree, “was concerned that she had young children and would be unable to care for her children if she injured her back while working.”
Commissioners, through their participation in the County Risk Sharing Authority of Ohio, settled the lawsuit for $150,000 — $87,344.86 to Crabtree and $62,655.14 to her attorney.
According to the terms of the settlement, the county commissioners at the time — Marilyn John, Tim Wert and Gary Utt — did not admit any violation of the law and Crabtree waived her right to sue on the same claims in the future.
Wert and Utt are no longer commissioners.
Jordan, 54, was suspended in November/December 2016 for 10 days for making employment decisions without prior authorization.
The suspension notice, found in his personnel file, said Jordan engaged in “gross neglect of duty by making employment decisions without prior authorization, which created liability for the county.”
According to other documents in the personnel file, Jordan was also advised by commissioners (John, Utt and Wert) on March of 2015 that he was not authorized to conduct car stops.
Commissioners advised Jordan after he had stopped a car for excessive speed. Jordan told commissioners he had only done three to five car stops in his years with the dog warden’s office and that they were done for public safety.
“The Board would like to reiterate their position that you are not authorized to conduct car stops of this nature and hereby directed not to do so again in the future. This position is based on recent legal opinions received from the Mansfield Law Director and the Richland County Prosecutor which state that this action falls outside of your statutory authority pursuant to the Ohio Revised Code,” commissioners wrote.
Commissioners began interviewing candidates for an interim dog warden last week. Vero said operating the shelter since Jordan’s departure has been a team effort by commissioners, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department and the Richland County Auditor’s Office.
He said dogs at the shelter are being well cared for during this transition time.
