Tammy Meinershagen speaks of how she loves “governance” and that is her favorite part of the job as a councilwoman. One “best practice” and vital component of good governance is transparency. Why is transparency so important? It boosts public trust, confidence, and citizen participation. Transparency has become a virtue in public management and public policymaking. It is an important democratic value that a trustworthy, high-performing, and responsible government pursues.
WHY IS FRISCO NOT TRANSPARENT?
We have to assume everyone reading our blog is new and may not have read previous blogs. In 2023, when Mayor Cheney was running for re-election against Retired Former Fire Chief, Mark Piland we wrote the blog Tangled Web of Lies (click on the title to read it) which detailed out how acting HR Director Sassy Lauren Safranek set in motion a calculated witch hunt to protect her job and wrongdoing against then Fire Chief, Mark Piland.
Why is that blog so important? In it, we mentioned that on April 4, 2024, the Frisco City Council, after emerging from an executive session, voted on one item from its executive agenda. “In connection with item No. 2A, ii on tonight’s agenda, Bill Woodward made a motion, “I move to authorize the city manager to release the second investigative report, dated Sept. 1, 2022, concerning Mark Piland.” That night, the Frisco City Council, with a 5-0 vote, moved to pass the motion. Mayor Cheney conveniently recused himself. It is important to note that Bill Woodard, Angelia Pelham, John Keating, and Tammy Meinershagen had already endorsed and been helping with Mayor Cheney’s re-election campaign. That night, it was clear the release of this document was designed to be a political hit job. Since that night, Woodard also ran a PAC against our Firefighters and started the Vote Yes for Broadway PAC with Tammy Meinershagen.
CLEARLY, THE COUNCIL MEMBERS WERE COMPROMISED AND SHOULD HAVE ALSO ALL RECUSED THEMSELVES ALONG WITH JEFF CHENEY! BETTER YET, IT SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN VOTED ON BY THE COUNCIL MEMBERS – WHY NOT SEND IT TO THE AG INSTEAD?
They didn’t want to wait 45 to 60 days because that would have been “after the election,” and they were worried Mark Piland might win. So, shaking in their boots, they took it upon themselves to vote at the council. The same council that determines ethical complaints against each other!
Fast forward to 2025 and we write our blog City Hall’s Troubled Seas last week that questions why “TOP BRASS” HR Director, Sassy Lauren Safranek and Assistant HR Director, Jacinta Shanks just vanished into the dark night. Missing for weeks, internal sources telling us that they both had been suspended, investigations were ongoing, and their return dates to the office were unknown made us file some PIR’s for more information.
FIRST PIR REQUEST: JACINTA SHANKS
4/1/2025: FWB Filed the Public Information Request
“We would like all documents and information regarding the investigation into, administrative leave of, and outcome of Jacinta Shanks – HR. We would like any and all investigative records, including emails, screenshots, and messages regarding Jacinta Shanks and fellow employees that refer to them making racist remarks/comments to other black subordinates, disparaging employees, and making fun of other employees. We would like to know if Jacinta Shanks received a promotion after this investigation.”
4/16/2025: City of Frisco responds and asks us to “CLAIRFY” our request to the city
4/22/2025: FWB replied to the request
5/7/2025: We assumed in the eye of “GOOD GOVERNANCE” they city would be transparent just like they have been with previous employees, right? No. Absolutely Not!
We received the response that reads, “The City of Frisco has reviewed its files, and has located documents responsive to your request. However, due to issues of confidentiality, the City has chosen to seek a ruling from the Office of the Attorney General regarding the release of the responsive documents. Please see attached for a letter from Abernathy, Roeder, Boyd & Hullett, PC, attorneys for the City of Frisco, informing you of the City’s decision to seek a ruling from the Office of the Attorney General. The Office of the Attorney General has up to 45 business days in which to make a ruling regarding your request.”
SECOND PIR REQUEST INTO JACINTA SHANKS AND JIREH SHOE
4/1/2025: FWB filed a PIR Request
We also filed a second PIR that reads, “Related to the Jacinta Shanks and Jireh Shoe Investigations or any other HR employees. We would like a copy of any NDA signed by a new employee related to their failure during the probation period. We would like to know if any female employee received a payout or payment related to this investigation, was asked to sign an NDA, who was released, terminated, removed, etc for failing their probation period.”
4/11/2025: City of Frisco responds and asks us to “CLAIRFY” our request to the city (sound familiar)
4/22/2025: FWB replied to the request
1. Jacinta Shanks and Jireh Shoe Investigations: We are specifically requesting any investigative reports, findings, HR communications, termination notices, or disciplinary actions related to Jacinta Shanks and Jireh Shoe. If these individuals were involved in internal investigations conducted by HR or Legal, we request all documents reflecting: • The nature of the investigation • Dates of the investigation • Parties interviewed or named • Final outcomes or recommendations • Settlement agreements, if applicable
2. NDAs Signed by New Employees Who Did Not Complete Probation We are requesting copies of any Non-Disclosure Agreements (NDAs) signed between January 1, 2021, and April 1, 2025, by employees of the HR Department who were released, terminated, or resigned before completing their probationary period. If a list of names is required to narrow this down, we ask the City to identify individuals who meet the criteria during that time frame so we can refine accordingly.
3. Female Employees—Payments or NDAs Related to HR Investigations We are seeking records that show whether any female employee involved in an HR investigations between January 1, 2021, and April 1, 2025: • Received a financial payout or settlement (voluntary or involuntary separation) • Was asked or required to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement • Was terminated, released, or otherwise separated during or at the end of probation These may include settlement agreements, NDAs, HR exit memos, or other documents reflecting these outcomes.
We are not asking the City to answer legal questions—only to provide existing documents that meet the above clarified criteria. If there is a more efficient way to identify the documents—such as a keyword search (e.g., “probation,” “settlement,” “NDA,” “termination”) or a specific custodian of records—please advise. We are happy to work with you to facilitate this.
5/7/2025: Guess what, we assumed for a second time that in the eye of “GOOD GOVERNANCE” they city would be transparent. I bet you can guess their response; it was identical to our other PIR. Literally, identical!
We received the exact same response as the first PIR which reads, “The City of Frisco has reviewed its files, and has located documents responsive to your request. However, due to issues of confidentiality, the City has chosen to seek a ruling from the Office of the Attorney General regarding the release of the responsive documents. Please see attached for a letter from Abernathy, Roeder, Boyd & Hullett, PC, attorneys for the City of Frisco, informing you of the City’s decision to seek a ruling from the Office of the Attorney General. The Office of the Attorney General has up to 45 business days in which to make a ruling regarding your request.”
THIRD PIR WE ARE FILING NOW: Lauren Safranek HR
Now we are going to file a PIR for everything related to Sassy Lauren Safranek and what do you want to bet, we are going to get the same response. Using delay tactics to push it out, then send it to the AG to further delay it. Why? What do they not want to come out before you and I vote at the polls? The delay is purposeful and if they truly wanted to show “GOOD GOVERNANCE” – Tammy Meinershagen couldn’t you vote to release the files? Lead the charge for transparency!
GOOD GOVERNANCE: JUST VOTE ON IT!
In our opinion, the city set a precedent with Mark Piland on what is or is not confidential in an employee’s HR file when they went to the council and voted to release his record, especially when that vote was by four members of the council who endorsed and were working on Mayor Cheney’s campaign against that employee. So why can’t they vote again to release the HR file for Safranek, Shanks, and anyone else in the HR investigation? Show the voters you have nothing to hide and that it is consistency of GOOD GOVERNANCE.
WE NEED YOUR HELP!
We think all the citizens of Frisco who want transparent communication should email the city attorney’s office, the entire city council, and the City Manager’s office, demanding the release of all documents from the HR Department investigation, just like they did with Former Fire Chief, Mark Piland. If there is an issue, they should be able to vote on it at a city council meeting. We would expect the same transparency in a 5-0 vote to release it. Because good governance is transparent, right?
To Whom It May Concern:
I am writing as a citizen of Frisco to request full transparency on behalf of the city, to release all HR documents related to the HR investigation into Jacinta Shanks, Lauren Safranek, and any other employee. For us to trust our city government, we need to see transparency, even if that means it has to go to a vote at the city council meeting to be released.
What are they hiding? It should alarm citizens that the city will vote to release one employee’s or a former employee’s records and not release others. One was running against the mayor for office, while the others were not. If you didn’t believe us in 2023 when we called it a political hatchet job, then you should believe us now! Why else would they fight the release of HR records for other employees under investigation?
HR-GONE: The Mysterious Disappearance of Frisco’s Human Resources Trio
It’s been unusually quiet over at City Hall lately. It’s the kind of quiet that screams “Something’s rotten in the records room.” While most departments are humming along in their usual bureaucratic fog, the stench of an investigation is sweeping the building due to some major “Absences.”
A few weeks ago, Lauren “Sassy” Safranek and Jacinta Shanks, top brass in Frisco’s Human Resources Department, vanished like a bowl of queso at a Friday Night tailgate. Gone. Poof. Not a peep. Did they get lost on a ship stuck in troubled seas? Maybe they went ice fishing and fell in the hole? It’s like they just pulled a Houdini!
We reached out to some of our sources inside city hall. When something like this happens, it does not take long for whispers and rumors to begin. One whistleblower told us, “One minute they’re steering the ship, the next day they’re gone like a Margarita on Cinco de Mayo.” Did they quit? Nope. Did they announce a vacation? Were they abducted by an alien spaceship sent by fed-up municipal employees?
I mean, it’s not the craziest theory on the table. What we do know is this: Multiple sources allege they’re on administrative leave—which in government-speak often translates to: “Something’s gone sideways, and we’re pretending we have it under control.”
Rumor Tornado: Allegations Aplenty
Cue the local rumor mill which is working overtime, spinning out allegations faster than a ceiling fan in an August heatwave. Allegations range from forged documents, toxic workplace culture, and racist comments. And while we’d love to dismiss it all as wild conspiracy, here’s the truth: When that much smoke is circling, it usually ain’t from a scented candle. For a city who claims to have pride in their professionalism and diversity, something like this is not just smoke, somewhere there is a fire! Someone call the Fire Department!! (more about that in a sec)
If things weren’t already murky enough, we got word that Shamaria, another key player in HR, is also out. Administrative leave too? Vacation? Witness protection? We hope to tell you soon why people are just vanishing from the organization chart. We are just giving the city the courtesy of a comment request before we move forward. For now, they think no one’s talking. Not the city, not the employees, not even a cryptic passive-aggressive Nextdoor post. However, that is simply not true! They have more cracks and leaks than the Titanic.
At least when you email any of them you get back the “official” statement which is a robotic Out-of-Office reply that reads like it was written by ChatGPT on Ambien. The silence is deafening. No answers. No updates. Not even a cryptic “thoughts and prayers” from City Hall. So, what did we find?
HR Hotline Tellanovella
Case 61: Discrimination or Harassment! It was filed on 4/25/23 and closed one month later on 5/23/23 and the person identified in the behavior was none other than Jacinta Shanks – HR Manager. The report goes on to say that on April 10th while the Director was away, Jacinta pulled her staff into a meeting and yelled and screamed at them for two hours. It reads “she was screaming that they were bad in their roles in HR, was name calling, cussing, screaming, etc.” Not only could she be heard yelling through the department, but she could heard in the hallway too which the reporter said was abusive and unprofessional. The end result? The case was closed and no evidence was found.
Case 62: Listed as “OTHER” was reported on 5/4/23 and closed on 5/23/23. The hotline complaint is about the same “April 10th Issue” listed in Case 61 but this time the complaint is the initial report was closed out and never investigated by the HR Director, Laurn Safranek.
Case 64: Falsification of Contracts, Reports or Records was reported on 5/29/23 and closed out 6/22/23. We reported this in our Twelve Days of Christmas Blog back in 2023. It was Day 3: Case 64 & HR Malfeasance and Day 9: Case 64 Responses. You can just click the Case names, and it will take you directly to those blogs. We know for a fact his true and it is why Lauren Safranek used a fake investigation to go after the Former Fire Chief, to cover up her own fraud. The complaint was closed out due to NO EVIDENCE FOUND!
Meanwhile, Over in the Fire Department…
You’d hope that while HR has hit the skids, all the other departments would be cruising along smoothly, right? Wrong.
Five employees have recently left the Frisco Fire Department. We’re not talking about minor attrition here—we’re talking about experienced professionals pulling the ripcord. Some retired early, which means, “I’m out of here because this will never get better,” while others just walked out of the job.
Why? The unofficial rumor is due to the lack of true Fire Department leadership and lack of support by city management. Tammy’s recent comments “caught on tape” sure didn’t help when they were called 300lb Bullies. They have realized it is not going to get better without change on the Dias and new fresh minds sitting in the seats on the council. Maybe that is why the Frisco Firefighters Association and Frisco Police Officers Association has endorsed Burt Thakur and Jared Elad in the runoff. One thing is clear for sure those that put their life on the line to save our lives and our property are sick of the city’s BS and jumping off the Titanic early while there is still a lifeboat to get them somewhere else.
Damage Control in Public Works?
HR, then the Fire Department? Surely, it’s a fluke – nothing to worry about, right? Wrong. Just a few weeks ago a lady spoke at citizens input about the “issues” in public works and how she was upset that a letter she sent it to recognize someone was never given to them. Well turns out there is a flood in the Public Works Department too and it goes back several years.
Sometime in 2024, Lauren Safranek (HR – now allegedly out on administrative leave) hired an outside HR Consulting Company, called Kathy Shields Consulting, to investigate the “alleged complaints through the HR hotline of an inappropriate relationship.” That’s right, the “ALLEGED” complaints involve Lover Boy, Kevin Grant, his alleged girlfriend, Loosey Goosey Gloria Martinez (who is married to someone else who works in the city).
Sources from deep in city leadership told us NDA’s were required by everyone in Public Works. The affair is alleged to have been happening for several years now, and the consultants couldn’t understand why people were bothered by it. Well, when one who is loosey goosey starts to get promotions and special treatment you can see why it would upset those that work around her.
Piling High HR Allegations in Public Works
Case 55: Time Abuse was reported on 1/3/23 and closed on 1/30/23. The report reads that Office Manager, Gloria Martinez and Kevin Grant, Assistant Director for months would go off during work hours to donate plasma for extra money while still on the clock (meaning they were stealing taxpayer dollars and being paid for it). The confidential reporters said they believed the stolen time was equal to $50,000 dollars. Their report continued with all the CSR’s and other direct reports were aware of the happenings. HR found no evidence and closed the case.
Case 57: Offensive and Inappropriate Communication was reported on 3/17/23 and closed on 5/8/23. This report is about Marvin Redmond, a Supervisor and foul mouth in the office. HR found no evidence and closed the case.
Case 58: Nepotism/Favoritism Inappropriate Workplace Relationship was reported on 3/20/23 and closed on 4/11/23. The report says Kevin Grant, Assistant Director of Public Works and Gloria Martinez, Office Admin, are having an inappropriate relationship and disappear at different times of the day for extended periods. It mentions Kevin has a DUI so he gets Gloria to drive him everywhere. They openly flirt in the office making others uncomfortable and awkward. The Director of Public Works, Gabe appears to do nothing and turns a blind eye. HR found no evidence and closed the case.
Case 59: Violation of Policy was reported on 3/20/23 and closed on 4/12/23. The report states that Gabe Johnson, the Director of Public Works knows that Kevin Grant, Assistant Director of Public Works was convicted of a DUI which is an issue because driving a city vehicle is part of his job to check on employees and job sites. The report notes others have been fired in the past for DUI’s but this time Gabe choses to look the other way. HR found no evidence and closed the case.
Interesting thing here, we did a simple search, and we found a DUI for a Kevin Grant – could it be the same Kevin Grant that works at the City of Frisco driving city vehicles?
Case 84/85/86/87/88: Multiple Reports about Public Works and the HR Cover up also reported to the hotline in 2024/25. The first starts with a 3-page complaint about Gloria Martinez, the Strategic Services Manager in Public Works (new title), related to her behavior and ongoing love affair with her boss. The case was closed when NO EVIDENCE WAS FOUND!
We could keep going, but we don’t want to sound like a broken record. Sources from deep in city leadership told us NDA’s were required by everyone in Public Works during the investigation. The consultants couldn’t understand why people were bothered by it. Our guess, when one who is loosey goosey starts to get promotions and special treatment, you can see why it would upset those who work around her.
What we find interesting is each time they are closed due to no evidence found. One report, I could see its just petty employee behavior but when you have multiple reports in multiple departments and they are always investigated by the same HR folk (who are even named in the complaint) something tells me – there is some rotting shit in Denmark.
Let’s Talk About Leadership — Or Lack Thereof
Enter Wes Pierson, Frisco’s relatively new City Manager. According to the Tammy tapes, she just finished his “yearly review.” Don’t worry, we are filing a PIR for that blow pop sucker!
To hear some folks inside City Hall tell it, Wes didn’t just walk in with a chip on his shoulder—he brought the whole bag of chips on this back. There’s a growing sentiment that his arrogant, top-down leadership style is rubbing people the wrong way, all the way down to those “entry level employees.” Micromanaging? Check. Intimidating culture? Double check. Open-door policy? Not unless you’re bringing praise, apparently.
And here’s the kicker: this isn’t Wes’s first rodeo when it comes to morale problems.
Sources from his previous job in Addison say the same script played out there. Multiple departures. Low morale. Leadership complaints. Sound familiar? Because it should. History doesn’t repeat, but it sure rhymes.
Walking on Eggshells
Maybe it’s time we stopped asking what happened and started asking who’s driving the bus at the city. Insiders describe the current vibe inside City Hall as “walking on eggshells.” But in the absence of information, people fill in the blanks themselves—and right now, that blank is filled with rumors, stress, and enough anxiety to power every Keurig in the building. However our City Council Members want you to believe everything is just dandy – and the truth is the cancer is all over the city including our City Council.
Final Thoughts
To the City of Frisco: This isn’t Mean Girls. We get that HR matters can be sensitive and complex. But people deserve a straight answer—or at the very least, an acknowledgment that something is amiss. And to Mr. Pierson: you were brought in to lead, not reign. Arrogance isn’t management.Intimidation isn’t accountability. And silence isn’t transparency.
The people who make this city run—from dispatchers to developers—deserve better than this circus. We’ve got talent walking out the door, departments on edge, and a leadership team that thinks “no comment” is good enough. Then to top off the Sunday, we have city council members getting caught on tape showing their authentic self in a safe space, acting no better than some of the city “employees” she thumbs her nose up at, who work for our city. Too bad we can’t file an HR Complaint with the hotline about Tammy.
If you read this and don’t think we need a change in our city, you are simply delusional! If you want to try and discredit us because we are anonymous – go ahead. Companies and cities cannot operate this way.
Years of HR HOTLINE COMPLAINTS, which name HR as part of the problem investigated by none other than HR. Simple No Evidence Found! Years of complaints about issues in Public Works, but simply no evidence found! More reports about other departments from PD, Facilities / Maintenance, and Professional Services, simple, no evidence found!
A city’s HR Team doesn’t go POOF IN THE NIGHT, unless there is a serious issue! If you want to believe our Fire Department is a group of bullies, we can’t change your mind. The fact is that a fire department does not lose tenure like our department has in one year unless there is a reason for it. If you want to believe that our Public Works department has no issues after 15+ complaints have been reported for the same thing by different people, then we can’t change your mind. How many cities have to hire this many outside consultants or investigators to look at an issue and still find no evidence? What you should care about is that it is your tax dollars paying for it.
For years, the city has operated with the mentality to protect the ones they like and cut the ones that could or will “uncover the problem”. Hence, our former Fire Chief and several other employees across other city departments. If you want to blame the wrong people and keep denying there is a problem, better yet, that there is a cancer in the city that starts at the top, then you are blind and stupid. The problem starts with our city council leaders and trickles down through the city. I would love for someone to explain to me how one city has so many problems! Don’t believe us, fine! We can’t make you see what you choose to close your eyes to. Just continue to be sheep!
City of Frisco Motto: Keep the cancer, eat the innocent!
Most people wonder what is the point or purpose of the Human Resource department and who are supposed to be advocating for? In simple terms, think of HR as an Agent, think of the City as the Principal, then remember the Agent acts on behalf of the Principal. That means HR is just like the City Attorney in some ways, first and foremost they exist to protect the city from exposure and liability in its management of its workforce.
Little did we know when we published our Day 3: Case 64 & HR Malfeasance that we would get several emails from readers. Some of the emails thanked us for exposing how the Human Resources Department in the City of Frisco operates. Others from new “whistleblowers” who told us about their experience with Human Resources and specifically Lauren Safranek. It left us with one question, is this a superficial issue or how deep does the dirt in HR go?
In Wes Piersons exit interview notes with Jeromy Porter it talks about “job description issues” between Preferred or Required. Wes writes that Porter tells him there was a change to the job description without approval. We have reached out to Jeromy Porter to ask further questions and we hope he responds. When you read the notes you wonder, could this be true? Then when you see the Case 64 Hotline Complaint with very similar complaints and accusations, it starts to validate what Porter said in his exit interview. One is random but two we start to smell something fishy.
We wanted to know, what is the big deal between the two words, Preferred and Required? With a little digging we learned that when working in a city you are extended certain benefits based on the job description. In Frisco, Fire Fighters and Police Officers have additional benefit pay for Certifications & Education. If the job description says Preferred Education, Experience, and Certifications that means they receive additional pay in the following amounts: Certification pay for Intermediate, Advanced, and Master’s Certifications at $50, $80, and $120 per month. Education Pay for Associate, Bachelor, and Master’s Degrees at $50, $100, and $150 per month. However, if the job description says, “Required” then that means there is no additional benefit pay. That simple change of one word can basically affect one’s income from what we discovered. Now it makes sense why Porter and others might be upset, and we are currently looking further into this.
Then we received another email from a new whistleblower within 24 hours of publishing Case 64. It said, I cannot tell you who I am as I do not want to get fired but I suggest you pull the HR files for a few folks who recently let the department in the last few years. It gave us some names, so of course we filed our PIR requests and we are waiting for the city to process those. We are filled with anticipation of what we might find!
Then we got another email of similar complaints in another city department. The insider said reading Case 64 made them realize they are not alone. They said we should file a PIR for a copy of all the complaints called into the Ethics Hotline for the last 3 to 5 years and to be prepared as it may be a shocker! Well, of course we went right away to file a PIR for that, and we are waiting for the city to process it.
The email went on to say Human Resources is corrupt and they don’t follow through investigating the complaints received via the hotline. They are known to look away because of the personal relationships they have with the employees mentioned in the complaints. Also, they said the hotline is compromised because Lauren Safranek is crooked, and she is the one who gets all the complaints so you can easily make things go away and no one will know. Lastly, is stated that HR has falsified records and job descriptions in order to demote or fire employees. Wow, this is now the 3rd complaint of that happening and in different departments.
We also received an email about how the HR Department uses the Nepotism Policy to their advantage when they don’t want to hire someone and then they change it or ignore it for others who are “their friends.” We found this allegation interesting because we have a PIR into the city already about the reason they changed the Nepotism Policy two times already this year. Rumor has it was to hire Fire Chief Lee Glover and the new IT Director.
Then we received a tip through our website about multiple city employees having affairs with each other (and yes it named those involved). Apparently some of those having affairs with their bosses end up getting promotions. While that is a JUICY TIP, it is a bad place for the city to be down the road if a sexual harassment lawsuit were to come up. Well, before we out anyone we will do our work to confirm if these “affairs” are true.
Lastly we learned that many Directors in the city may be abusing their city credit cards with personal purchases. Well, to be honest we are not shocked by this one as you see it on the news every day. However, we will be filing PIRs for records for many of these department heads.
In closing, when you start to hear the same complaint from multiple people we have to believe that something smells like SHIT in Frisco. What we do know is that several of the emails were from current employees and they are tired of the city looking the other way. So, it makes you wonder, why won’t the news cover this? Why has our new City Manager not investigated this? How far does the bad and/or possibly illegal behavior go? How long has this been going on?
What do you think of when you hear the word Human Resources? Are you one of those who thinks HR is your friend, and they are there to help you manage workplace misconduct and other issues? Maybe you fall on the other end of the spectrum and think HR is the hidden devil in the workplace and they are there to protect the company…not you. If you have ever seen the movie Up in The Air then you know Ryan Bingham, played by George Clooney, lives a life of constant travel and is a corporate downsizer. What is that? His job is to look at employees face-to-face and fire them delicately. In one scene he says “Natalie, what is it you think we do here?” Natalie replies, “We prepare the newly unemployed for the emotional and physical hurdles of job hunting while minimizing legal blow-back.” Ryan looks at her and says, “That’s what we’re selling. It’s not what we are doing. We are here to make limbo tolerable, to ferry wounded souls across the river of dread until the point where hope is dimly visible. And then stop the boat, shove them in the water, and make them swim.” Does any of their conversation sound like they are there for the employees, of course not!
After talking with several whistleblowers and reading the exit interview notes we filed a few PIRs, one specifically asked for information on the Job Descriptions and any complaints made regarding them being changed without approval. Interestingly we got back a document titled Case 64 – Hotline Web and it was titled “Falsification of Contracts Reports or Records.” We immediately knew Porter was on to something in his comments to Wes Pierson in the exit interview.
What was Case 64 about to unveil? Well, in the snapshot it says the call come in on 5/29/2023. The report goes on to identify the caller as an employee, who chose to remain anonymous. Under a section called “Case Information” it lists several questions the caller had to answer.
Question One: Please identify the person(s) engaged in this behavior: The caller identified HR Director, Lauren Safranek, HR Department, Lori Rutland, and Assistant Fire Chief, Lee Glover.
Question Two: Do you suspect or know that a supervisor or management is involved? The caller identified Deputy City Manager, Henry Hill.
Question Three: What is the general nature of this matter? The caller said HR Director, Lauren Safranek and Assistant Chief, Lee Glover have repeatedly altered documents to protect their personal job performance measurements and personal initiatives. Example of this include forcing employees to secretly alter job descriptions without notifying employees, deceptively altering policies without staff involvement, requiring employees to falsify signatures, taking actions to deliberately undermine employee grievance / complaint processes, and making slanderous statements of other Supervisors to facilitate personal gain.
Question Four: What do you estimate the monetary value of this matter to be? The caller said anywhere from $250,000 to $499,999 USD.
Question Five: Where did this incident or violation occur? The caller said FD Job Descriptions, FD Reports, Workers Compensation Policies, Termination Letters, Investigation involvement with a conflict of interest.
Question Six: Please provide the specific or approximate time this incident occurred? The caller said 2020 to 2023.
Question Seven: How did you become aware of this violation? The caller states they accidentally found a document or file.
Question Eight: Please identify any persons who have attempted to conceal this problem and the steps they took to conceal it. The caller states City Manager, Wes Pierson, Deputy City Manager, Henry Hill, HR Director Lauren Safranek, Assistant or Fire Chief Lee Glover, and HR Lori Rutland worked together to hide their various actions. It asked for details to which the caller said multiple staff and previous employees have been impacted by these actions and are aware they took place.
If you are anything like us our jaws dropped wide open, we could not believe what we were reading. We had to read it a few times and each time we asked why would an employee take a risk to make these accusations with the possibility they could be identified. This gave a new light to the Porter’s exit interview.
Then we noticed the report section titled “Assignments & Access” and it listed the case assignee(s) as none. Then it reads restricted access and lists Henry Hill. Then it has the case access list which names Hector Quiroga and Jacinta Shanks. It made us wonder what restricted access means. Was Henry Hill the only person with access or the only person restricted so he had no access to the complaint? If restricted access means no access, then why are Lauren Safranek, Lori Rutland, and Lee Glover also listed as well as they are named in the complaint?
There were no case notes, no synopsis, and no outcomes listed. Do you think they even investigated the claims made by the caller? Do you think this should have been reviewed by an independent third party since it involved city management? Remember in our blog about the ethics complaints the city attorney could not investigate as they are paid for by the city, to protect the city. Most of those in upper management have been there awhile and are probably too friendly with each other to be objective. The reality is these are very serious accusations and if true could leave the city open to potential lawsuits and if it happened the city should be firing several people from the top down.
We were determined to go through all the items now in our PIRs and start putting together a timeline from 2020 to 2023 to see what we could uncover. In our next blog we plan to lay out the timeline and our theory supported by evidence of what we believe happened. Our guess, you will be shocked!
Whistleblowers come in many forms. If we had to describe ours we would say they are like Twelve drummers drumming, eleven pipers piping, ten lords a-leaping, nine ladies dancing, eight maids a-milking, seven swans a-swimming, six geese a-laying, five golden rings, four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves, and a partridge in a pear tree. Recently one of our six geese-a-laying tipped us off to another high-ranking Frisco FD fire fighter who gave notice to retire.
Jeromy Porter is a 27-year fire service veteran. Most recently he served as Deputy Chief with the Frisco Fire Department. In 1996, Porter joined the Lake Cities Fire Department where he spent most of his years and climbed the rank to Deputy Chief. We asked ourselves why would a man with man years left retire now? Then we saw an announcement in Star Local Media that Jeromy Porter was now the Assistant Fire Chief for The Little Elm Fire Department. That made us ask, why would a man retire then go another city? We wanted to know if he did an exit interview so asked some insiders at city hall who told us yes, he did. We filed a PIR with the city to obtain those records and when we received them, well we were not disappointed.
We received a copy of the City Manager, Wes Pierson’s handwritten notes from the exit interview. At the very top it is dated 9/27 and has his name and initials next to it. Wes writes JP doesn’t want to leave but his relationship with Fire Chief, Lee Glover is unsustainable. Then we note 3 bullet points down the page.
The first point is titled Job Description Issue (preferred vs required). Pierson notes Porter said the job descriptions were changed without approval. On the side Pierson writes When, How and Why and we are guessing those were his internal questions or notes to himself.
We had heard rumors that some shady stuff was happening in HR but we still were perplexed by Porters comments. We went back to some of those who had reached out to us earlier from inside the city to ask more specific questions and the responses were eye opening. It started us on a new quest of digging.
The second point is titled Lee Glover. Pierson writes that for over 9 years Lee Glover has constantly insulted him, belittled him, made jokes on his height. It also goes on to say Glover yelled and cussed at staff and that he would flex. We asked an insider what “Flex” might mean she told us that Glover would Flex like he was going to shove or hit someone to intimidate them. Pierson notes that Porter was concerned about leaving because Glover may retaliate and go after his son who is a 3 Year Firefighter with the City of Frisco.
Are we surprised by Porters claims? No! In a previous blog we told you about the City of Frisco, Fire Department Employee Climate Survey done in the fall of 2011. It noted in the survey that this was the FOURTH one done over the PAST 10 YEARS. Why would a city need to do so many climate surveys? The firefighters felt that unless Chief Mack Borchardt and his entire Senior Staff, which included (drum roll) Lee Glover were replaced with someone from the outside, there was no way to correct the issues. The report said from the top down they ruled with things like a temper, iron fist, and threats. In 2023, a recent survey was done by the Fire Fighters Association and over 200 fire fighters gave Glove a vote of no confidence, so not much has changed since 2011.
The third point only confirmed what we already reported that our new Fire Chief, Lee Glover, has an alcohol problem. Pierson writes 3. Drinking (only while traveling). He writes JP claims that Vetterick, Owen and others felt peer pressure to stay and “close the bar.” Based on the notes we are only assuming that Porter may have told then Fire Chief, Mark Piland about the incident because in Pierson’s notes it reads Piland (response). Then there is a star symbol and a note it last happened at inspection of tiller and names the 3 fire fighters. It is hard to read Pierson’s writing, but it looks like Gilliam, Odum and Dixon.
Here is what we find interesting about Porters exit interview with Pierson and his personal notes. When it comes to point 3, we know of a July 2022 complaint about Lee Glover on a “travel trip” to inspect fire trucks and the names of those involved are different that those written in the exit interview notes. So, it appears when we wrote about Groggy Lee Glovers behavior in a previous blog, we weren’t wrong! It is called a pattern of behavior.
In closing, we believe Jeromy Porter and that he is telling the truth in his comments. He is leaving and has no reason to lie and he left on a professional level. We sent an email to Porter however we have had no reply to our inquiry. What we are curious about is what did the City Manager, Wes Pierson do after this interview. Did he file the notes and act as if these issues don’t possibly exist? Did he start asking questions?
Stay Tuned to learn about Sassy Lauren Safraneks acts of possible Malfeasance!
When you say the 12 days of Christmas people immediately think of the song, but did you know there really is a period called the 12 Days of Christmas? According to vox.com The 12 days of Christmas is the period in Christian theology that marks the span between the birth of Christ and the coming of the Magi, the three wise men. It begins on December 25 and runs through January 6, also known as Three Kings Day. With the holidays around the corner, we thought we would share that little bit of info for fun.
Now we need to get back to ‘The 12 Days of MALFEASANCE!’ The Oxford Dictionary defines malfeasance as wrongdoing, especially by a public official. We dug a little further to see if there was more legal definition and we found the website for Cornell University, Legal Information Institute. Malfeasance is intentional conduct that is wrongful or unlawful, especially by officials or public employees. Regardless of how you define it, the word should not be thrown around loosely as it can easily destroy one’s reputation. We decided to write a song…
On the first day of Christmas
Our “Whistleblower” gave to thee
Notes from a recent FD employee exit interview.
On the second day of Christmas
The exit interview notes gave to thee
A lead that someone in HR forged documents and did not obtain updated new signatures.
On the third day of Christmas
The exit interview notes gave to thee
More tea on Mr. Lee…. Fire Chief, Lee Glover that is.
On the fourth day of Christmas
A PIR gave to thee
Copy of an HR hotline complaint regarding falsification of contracts, reports, or records.
On the fifth day of Christmas
A PIR gave to thee
A copy of the full Mayday Report.
On the sixth day of Christmas
A PIR gave to thee
A reply of no responsive records to our inquiry into a complaint against Fire Chief, Lee Glover
but wait, hold tight …let’s see.
On the seventh day of Christmas
A second filed PIR into the complaint gave to thee
The records we requested after we gave them one more chance to come clean.
On the eighth day of Christmas
The trail of details gave to thee
Malfeasance committed by public employees and officials throughout the city!
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Thank you for enlightening us! It is about time people see the light.
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