kgrasha@lsj.com
April 12, 2011
From the Lansing State Journal
A lawsuit claims that Ingham County Clerk Mike Bryanton forced out an employee after it was determined she left a voice mail message that hinted Bryanton was cheating on his wife.
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| Ingham County Clerk Mike Bryanton |
It also says Bryanton, who is married, promoted a woman with whom he was romantically involved to a high-level position in the office, despite the fact that she had minimal experience and had worked in the office 1 1/2 years.
That employee, Janie Lee, was promoted in July 2010 from deputy clerk to chief deputy/elections coordinator and saw her salary increase by nearly $30,000.
In an interview, the 65-year-old Bryanton denied having a romantic relationship with Lee, who is 34. He said the salary increase came as a result of a reorganization that saved the county tens of thousands of dollars.
"There's no inappropriate relationship between Janie Lee and myself," he said.
Lee's salary went from $32,241 in 2009 to $61,072 in July 2010, according to county records.
Reorganization
Lee's promotion, Bryanton said, was part of a reorganization done because of budget cuts. She replaced two people, the chief deputy and the elections manager, whose yearly salaries he said totaled more than $140,000.
Bryanton said Lee, in her time as deputy clerk, demonstrated an excellent work ethic and intellect, and was always wanting to do more.
"Janie is doing a great job," he said. "She's doing the jobs, or most of the jobs, of two people."
The reorganization was approved by county commissioners, Bryanton noted, and salaries are set by the county's human resources department.
Lee, in an interview, called Bryanton a mentor and described their relationship as being like a father and daughter.
"We don't have a romantic relationship. Never have," she said. "Nothing inappropriate has ever happened between me and Mike."
'Seemed real close'
Several former employees - all of whom left within the last two years - told the State Journal they supported the lawsuit's claims of a romantic relationship between Bryanton and Lee.
Teresa Borsuk, a county employee for three decades who was chief deputy until retiring last year, said Bryanton kept a photograph of Lee's young daughter on his desk. Lee and Bryanton also would call each other "babe," Borsuk said.
Charlene Corrigan, the former elections manager who also retired last year, said Bryanton and Lee "seemed real close."
Bryanton said the 2-by-2-inch photograph of Lee's young daughter is among several - including his wife and daughter - on a credenza in the office. He said the girl, then 4 years old, gave him the photograph because she sees him as "a big-shot public official."
Anderson, a former deputy clerk, says she resigned under pressure after being accused of leaving a voice mail message for Lee's boyfriend that said: "There might be more to your girlfriend Janie's relationship with her boss."
Anderson denied that she was responsible for the message left in early January.
Voice test
The lawsuit says Bryanton, county attorney Bonnie Toskey and Anderson's union representative, Sally Auer, met Feb. 8, and afterward, Toskey told Anderson that she would have to take a voice test.
That test, conducted 10 days later over the telephone by an out-of-town analyst, found that Anderson's voice matched the person who made the call. She then was asked to resign or be fired.
She resigned under pressure, the lawsuit says, but then tried to take back her resignation. On March 4, Toskey notified Anderson that the county had accepted her resignation and "refused to acknowledge" that she tried to rescind it, the lawsuit says.
Denies making call
Anderson's attorney, Jeffrey Ray, said his client didn't make the call to Lee's boyfriend. She resigned, he said, because she was made to believe she didn't have a choice.
"They told her they had scientific proof it was her, no matter what she said," said Ray, who also questioned why her union representative did not back her.
Auer did not return a message seeking comment.
Requiring Anderson to take a voice test, according to the lawsuit, violated Michigan's polygraph protection act, which prohibits employers from administering polygraph tests to employees.
The voice test, the lawsuit says, used instrumentation to help verify Anderson's truthfulness, and thus was the same as a polygraph.
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