Dennis to Damon re STRS staff: Who was investigated; who will likely be charged; who participated?

From: Dennis Leone

To: Damon Asbury

Cc: board@strsoh.org

Sent: Sunday, April 16, 2006

Subject: STRS Staff Involvement

Damon -- as I mentioned to you in another email, I am disturbed over the comments by STRS staff members during the Sidaway trial and by their apparent level of involvement. For what reasons did staff members Grant and Ehlers want immunity? Why did they say they desired immunity for felonies? Why would such a request be made if there weren't concerns along those lines?

It is clear that the Ethics Commission has interviewed numerous staff members, including Eileen Boles and Steve Mitchell.

I desire to know the job titles and names of staff members who have been investigated by the Ethics Commission, and whom, based on the reasons for the convictions of Dyer and Sidaway, will likely be charged. More specifically, as a board member, I want to know which staff members participated in the activities that were described in the Dyer/Sidaway trials.

I guess I feel it is one thing for a secretary to be ordered to do something by Dyer and Sidaway; it is something else if those things are done by management level employees who should know better. It is my opinion that the Board needs to know what disciplinary action should be considered, given that our new ethics misconduct policy applies to Board members, not staff members. I feel the STRS membership deserves to know what our decision will be regarding internal breaches of ethics, irrespective of whether employees receive immunity in the immediate future.

Regarding immunity decisions: I am reminded of the parent who appealed her high school son's suspension to me a few years ago after the principal smelled alcohol on his breath at a basketball game. The mother took her son to the police station where a breathalyzer test showed very faint traces of alcohol. The fact that the amount of alcohol in the young man's system was negligible -- and far less than what would be needed to cause a police charge -- did NOT mean that the young man was absolved for breaking a disciplinary rule.

Dennis Leone