Grand Chute board members deny former administrator Jim March was wrongfully fired
GRAND CHUTE - The three Town Board members being sued for the alleged wrongful termination of Town Administrator Jim March deny they retaliated against March for cooperating with a state criminal investigation.
Defendants Jason Van Eperen, Jeff Ings and Ron Wolff, in a federal court document filed by their attorney, acknowledge they knew March had been interviewed by the Wisconsin Department of Justice Division of Criminal Investigation concerning an investigation involving Wolff. However, they dispute that March’s participation in any interviews with DCI caused them to fire him.
"The plaintiff cannot prove that the town or defendants Wolff, Van Eperen or Ings acted with deliberate indifference to plaintiff’s constitutional rights," the defendants said.
The defendants argue town employees besides March were interviewed by DCI special agents, and the board took no action against them.
They are seeking to dismiss the lawsuit in its entirety.
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March filed the lawsuit against the town, Van Eperen, Ings and Wolff, alleging the May 2 vote to fire him was "vindictively motivated" to punish him for his cooperation and communication with state investigators.
The investigation resulted in a felony charge against Wolff last week. Wolff is accused of having one of his companies, Lakeshore Cleaners Inc., execute a landscaping contract with the town while he was in office. The quote for the work totaled $26,865, which is in excess of the $15,000 limit set by state statute.
March's lawsuit also contends the May 2 meeting at which he was fired wasn't properly noticed under Wisconsin's open meetings law to intentionally circumvent his right and the public's right to be heard on the matter.
The lawsuit seeks compensation for lost pay and benefits, emotional distress, loss of reputation, humiliation and embarrassment, in addition to punitive damages.
March had been town administrator since December 2008.
In their court response, the defendants maintain the May 2 meeting was properly noticed. They also assert that March's claims "are barred in whole or in part by qualified immunity."
Qualified immunity shields government officials from liability so long as their conduct didn't violate clearly established statutory or constitutional rights.
The case is set for a scheduling conference on Aug. 16 before Judge William Griesbach in U.S. District Court in Green Bay.
Contact Duke Behnke at 920-993-7176 or dbehnke@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @DukeBehnke.
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This article originally appeared on Appleton Post-Crescent: Grand Chute board members deny they retaliated against Jim March
