New county administrator's suit against former employer Jefferson County still pending

Before going to work for Washington County government, Michelle Gordon was locked in government operation battles with officials in nearby Jefferson County, W.Va., where she served as financial director.

The details are included in a suit that Gordon filed last year against the Jefferson County Commission and others in which Gordon alleges she was defamed in her work there, among other allegations. The suit is pending in Jefferson County Circuit Court.

She also has previous ties to the city of Hagerstown, where she served as finance director. She resigned from that position in 2013 following an incident involving alleged misuse of funds. And although the city administration is declining to talk about that matter, a Hagerstown City Councilman said Wednesday it's still something that causes him to "grit my teeth."

Gordon was hired as chief financial officer for Washington County last fall and has been serving as acting county administrator following the abrupt retirement of John Martirano in May. Four of the county commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to appoint her county administrator. Commissioner Wayne Keefer was absent because of a business meeting and did not vote.

While Commissioners President John Barr said Gordon was not his first choice for administrator, he voted with Commissioners Jeff Cline, Randy Wagner and Derek Harvey to appoint her. Barr told The Herald-Mail he voted with the others because he believed unity among them was in the interests of the community and county employees.

Previously: Hagerstown's finance director resigns

But Keefer told The Herald-Mail that he would have voted against the appointment.

"Any negativity should only be seen as a reflection upon those commissioners who pushed the appointment," he said. "They didn't even have the courtesy to wait until we had a full board present."

Wagner and Harvey said they were aware of the controversies, but that Gordon had proven herself during her time with the county government.

While the commissioners discussed applicants during an executive (closed) session, "I can tell you from my point, I was totally satisfied with the research and background checks for me to give a very strong affirmative vote to hire Michelle as the county administrator," Wagner said.

"I got to know Michelle as the CFO; she was outstanding, in my opinion, and did a wonderful job as interim county administrator," he added. "And I just had no doubt in my mind that she can do this job. (She's) very, very analytical, very strong in her presentations and presents a professional opinion. And that's what I wanted."

Gordon declined to comment for this article citing the pending litigation in Jefferson County. She also declined to comment about her resignation as Hagerstown's finance director, saying it had been fully discussed with the county commissioners.

What was Gordon's history in Jefferson County, W.Va.?

Gordon's questioning of government operations in Jefferson County and the tensions that followed began in early 2021.

During months of examining spending and hiring practices in Jefferson County government that year, Gordon alleges in her suit that defamatory and false statements were made about her on Facebook by several county elected officials and other groups. She resigned from her job in December 2021.

In her suit against the Jefferson County Commission — and others, including Jefferson County Sheriff Tom Hansen — Gordon claims she was the victim of defamation and libel, retaliation and violations related to political affiliation. She claims there were ill feelings about her in county government because of her political leanings.

On advice from his attorney, Hansen said Tuesday he has been told not to comment.

Previously: Gordon named county administrator

Legal counsel for the commissioners could not be reached for comment.

No hearings or trial date have been set.

Why Gordon sued the Jefferson County Commission

In her suit, filed in September in Jefferson County Circuit Court, Gordon is asking that she be awarded compensation for lost wages, emotional distress and mental anguish.

She alleges various issues arose in county government related to tax operations, security breaches and other matters.

Much of it focuses on the sheriff's department.

Gordon said in the suit that she questioned Hansen's hiring and purchasing practices as well as funding for positions in the sheriff's office. Among the allegations, Gordon said she learned the sheriff's office entered into security service contracts for local businesses, in which sheriff's office employees were "paid a guaranteed premium rate of one and a half times their hourly rate."

Gordon said the arrangement was made without county approval and "performed as a loss to the county, effectively forcing the county to subsidize the security of various entities with overtime pay for its own sheriff's employees."

On Sept. 23, 2021, a group known as Jefferson County Perspective began publishing information about Gordon on its Facebook page and "doxing her in the process," according to the suit, meaning some of her private information was shared publicly. Another group known as Conservative Chicks of West Virginia, as well as Jefferson County Commissioner Tricia Jackson, Hansen and Jefferson County Clerk Jacki Shadle, made defamatory Facebook posts about Gordon, according to the suit.

On Nov. 22, Jackson wrote a letter on county commission letterhead without consent of the commission, Gordon said in her suit. The letter, addressed to Jefferson County Prosecuting Attorney Matthew Harvey, asked for an investigation of Gordon for "detrimental actions for the county that might be unlawful."

Gordon said Jefferson County Perspective also began attacking County Commissioner Steve Stolipher for supposedly supporting her. Some of the attacks were "photoshop" pictures of Stolipher with "dunce caps," the suit said.

What prompted Gordon to leave her post with the city

In 2013, Gordon resigned from the city of Hagerstown following an alleged misuse of funds. She had been Hagerstown's finance director.

City officials said at the time that the amount in question was less than $1,000 and that they anticipated the money being repaid. No charges resulted.

Scott Nicewarner, the city's current administrator, declined to comment recently about details of Gordon's resignation, including whether the money was repaid. He also declined to say what it's been like working with Gordon since she started working with the county.

That didn't stop Councilman Kristin Aleshire from speaking out about the matter Wednesday.

Aleshire recounted finding out about the allegation during a closed meeting of the council.

"As soon as I heard it, I said we should fire this individual," Aleshire said in a phone interview.

Aleshire said he cannot talk about what the issue was, but feels he is free to express his opinion about it. He said he fears that the city's decision not to comment on the situation could make it appear to the public that Aleshire was OK with the way the situation was resolved.

"That wasn't cool with me," Aleshire said, adding that the issue still causes him to "grit my teeth."

'We have a record of performance'

"A number of people made us aware of allegations" about Gordon, Harvey said, adding that the commissioners were aware of news stories about her departure from Jefferson County.

"I'm not going to discuss personnel. But we have a record of performance. We did due diligence."

Cline agreed.

"Based on my observations of her tenure as the CFO, she knows the county inside and out," he said, "and observing her during her interim, I think she's well qualified to take on the task of being the county administrator based on her experience."

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: New Washington County administrator battled officials in West Virginia