ng 2 an Rt eto gM Re ORRIN (2) That at all times pertinent hereto, Defendant, Grand Blanc Township, hereinafter “Defendant Township") was/is a governmental entity exercising governmental and business powers and activities in Genesee County, Michigan, and hired Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, to be its “Superintendent.” See Ex. 1. (3) That at all times pertinent hereto, Defendant, Al Mansour (hereinafter “Defendant Mansour”), was/is a Trustee of Defendant Township, residing herein Genesee County, Michigan, (4) That at all times pertinent hereto, Defendant, Ken Thomas (hereinafter “Defendant Thomas”), was/is a Trustee of Defendant Township, residing herein Genesee County, Michigan, (5) That at all times pertinent hereto, Defendant, Lonnie Adkins (hereinafter “Defendant Adkins”,) was/is a Trustee of Defendant Township, residing herein Genesee County, Michigan, (©) _ That at all times pertinent hereto, Defendant, Joe Massey (hereinafter “Defendant Massey”), was/is a Trustee of Defendant Township, residing herein Genesee County, Michigan. (7) That at alll times pertinent hereto, Defendant, Cathy Lane (hereinafter “Defendant Lane”), was/is the Clerk of Defendant Township, residing herein Genesee County, Michigan, (8) That pursuant to the law of Michigan, Defendants herein acting as government actors, have no governmental immunity shield or defense from the claims being asserted against them in this lawsuit. See, for example, Phinney v. Perlmutter, 222 Mich. App. 513 (1997); see also Whitman v. City of Burton, 493 Mich. 303 (2013). (9) That the salary of Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, was One Hundred Fifty Thousand ($150,000.00) Dollars per year, and he planned to work several more years, which was very likely since Defendant Township gave him evaluations that “exceeded expectations”, such that his total monetary damages ~ both economic and non-economic — will likely exceed Seven Hundred Fifty Thousand ($750,000.00) Dollars, making this Circuit Court a court of proper jurisdiction (10) That this Court is also a court of proper venue, both general, and special, in that filing this lawsuit in this Circuit Court comports with the special venue provision found in MCLA 15.363, P2. COUNT I WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION ACT VIOLATIONS (11) That we repeat paragraphs 1-10.eS “Feet mean ma com URE Np (12) That we have an employee protection law in Michigan, colloquially called the “Whistleblower Protection Act”, being MCLA 15.361 ef seg, which forbids Defendants from firing even an “at-will” employee, under the following circumstances: “15.362 Discharge Threats or Discrimination Against Employee for Reporting Violations of Law, Section 2 An employer shall not discharge, threaten, or otherwise discriminate against an employee regarding the employee's compensation, terms, conditions, location, or privileges of employment because the employee, or a person acting on behalf of the employee, reports or is about to report, verbally or in writing, a violation or a suspected violation of a law or regulation or rule promulgated pursuant to law of this State, a political subdivision of the State, or the United States to a public body, unless the employee knows that the report is false, or because an employee is requested by a public body to participate in an investigation, hearing or inquiry help of that public body, or a court action.” See MCLA 15.362. (13) That Defendants herein violated the aforesaid Whistleblower Protection Act employee protection law, thereby causing Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, to suffer the injuries and damages hereinafter set forth, when they unlawfully threatened, harassed, and eventually fired Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, whose evaluations “exceeded expectations.” (14) That just as bad as Defendants’ unlawful conduct towards Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, Defendants have publicly tried to cover up Defendants’ own unlawfal and threatening misconduct in violation of law, by blaming Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, for Defendants’ firing of him! (15) That specifically, but not by way of limitation, Defendant Mansour has publicly posted a video on Facebook blaming Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, for there not being a police contract negotiated yet, and blames Dennis Liimatia, Plaintiff, for other shortcomings, Defendant Thomas has publicly aligned himself in support of Defendant Mansour’s attack on Plaintiff even though they are aware itis factually incorrect. (16) _ That Defendants Mansour and Thomas say nothing in their public postings about how it was these two very Defendants (at least these two) who sabotaged and undermined the negotiation process Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, was engaging in by ~ behind Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff's, back ~ contacting individual police officers personally and directly, in violation of Michigan law, and important rules, policies, and regulations, which Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, reported to public bodies, but the harm had already been done and Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiffs, position and authority had been undercut.(17) That Defendant Mansour’s buddy, Defendant Thomas, actually told Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, point blank: “You'll be sorry you tumed us in.” This is a clear threatening violation of MCLA 15.361, ef seg. (18) That Defendant Mansour and his buddy, Defendant Thomas, also failed to explain to the public in their Facebook video how each one of them voted themselves a $4,000 Christmas bonus, and what effect that had on the police contract negotiations for which they blame Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff. While the police officers are fearful that there may not be enough money for bullet-proof vests, appropriate weapons, and other protective gear so that the Police can go home safe to their families at night, they pick up a newspaper and see how each Defendant Trustee voted himself a $4,000 bonus at Christmas time. Then they blame Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, for not “dealing with” the situation they created. (19) _ That Defendant Mansour’s quest for power also caused him to usurp and violate powers delegated by law, important law, rules and regulations, and in fact, express contract, to Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff. This is especially true when it comes to personnel decisions, hiring and firing decisions, etc, all of which was reported to publie bodies by Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, and deeply resented by Defendants herein, (20) That in fact, Defendants admit that Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, was fired for instances going back to September and/or October of 2019. See Ex. 2, Article dated 2/18/20, (21) | That Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, reported all Defendants’ violations of law, important rules and regulations, and his very express contract, to public bodies, which is why Defendants threatened, harassed, and fired Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, in a way designed to be humiliating to Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, without the matter even being placed on the agenda! (22) _ That asa direct and proximate result of Defendants’ violation of MCLA 15.361 et seq, Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, suffered the following injuries and damages amongst others, but not limited to: (@) Loss of his Superintendent job, which paid One Hundred Fifty Thousand ($150,000.00) Dollars per year, and other benefits; (®) Loss of employment and the privilege, benefit, honor, and esteem that goes with having a good job and being successful in that job; (©) Loss of earning capacity; (4) Emotional distress and mental anguish, past and future;(©) _ Injury to his feelings, including extreme embarrassment and humiliation, past and future; (f) Increased stress, which upon information and belief, affected Dennis Liimatta, physically, and caused him to have a heart attack; () Damage to his professional reputation, past and future, especially when certain Defendants herein sabotaged Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff's, job performance, then blamed him for not accomplishing what Defendants themselves sabotaged(!), then standing back and watching Defendants lie to the public about how they never threatened Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, and/or sabotaged his job performance when, in fact, they did both; (bh) Outrage; (i) Other injuries and damages, the exact nature and extent of which are not know known. (23) That Defendants herein are directly and/or vicariously liable for the acts and/or omissions and/or misrepresentations and/or tortious misconduct committed by persons who were then and there agents and/or employees and/or officers of Defendants, and acting wi the course and scope of said employment and/or agency by reason of the facts hereinabove stated or otherwise known to Defendants herein. (24) That upon information and belief, Defendants herein acted in concert with one another and aided and abetted one another, in ways currently unknown to Plaintiff, but well known to Defendants herein, for their own personal reasons. (25) _ That the damages attributable to the aforesaid injuries far exceed Seven Hundred Fifty Thousand ($750,000) Dollars. counrit BREACH OF Ct (26) That we repeat paragraphs 1-25. (27) That a contract e: Plaintiff. See Ex. 1. ted between Defendant Township and Dennis Liimatta, (28) That when Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, discussed job security and job longevity with Supervisor Bennett and Township Attomey David Lattie, more than once they assured him and promised him that, “you'll have the job as long as you want it.”(29) That under the terms of the aforesaid contract, if Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff's, employment was terminated “without cause and/or reason”, then he was entitled to three month's severance pay. (30) That Defendants herein did not have any “good cause or reason” to terminate Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff's, employment which Defendants themselves sabotaged and undermined. 31) __ That according to the express terms of the contract, Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, was/is entitled to at least three month’s severance pay, or approximately Thirty-Seven Thousand Five Hundred ($37,500) Dollars, (32) That if the contractual relationship between the parties was changed to a “for cause” contract, pursuant to the promises and assurances heretofore referenced in 428, Defendants breached this for cause contract by their own admission, and are liable to all damages that flow therefrom. (33) __ That the damages attributable to the aforesaid breach of contract are at least equal to Thirty-Seven Thousand Five Hundred ($37,500) Dollars, and perhaps much, much more depending on what the trier of fact decides as to the true nature and extent of this contractual relationship afler the promises and assurances referenced hereinabove in §28. WHEREFORE, and for all of which damages, Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, demands Judgment against Defendants herein in whatever amount in excess of Seven Hundred Fifty Thousand ($750,000) Dollars the trier of fact finds to be fair and just, in accordance with the law and evidence, together with interest, costs and attorney fees allowed by law, in particular, actual attorney fees allowed by law. Respectfully submitted, 717120 JsfTOM R. PABST Dated TOM R. PABST (P27872) Representing Dennis Liimatta JURY DEMAND Dennis Liimatta, Plaintiff, hereby demands a trial by jury. 1/1120 /sTOM R. PABST. Dated TOM R. PABST (P27872) Representing Dennis LiimattaExhibit 1' ‘ Charter Township of Grand Blanc SUPERINTENDENT EMPLOYMENT AGREEMENT For good consideration, the Charter Township of Grend Blane (Township) wishes to employ Dennis R. Liimatta as Township Superintendent (Superintendent) subject to the terms and Subject to the conditions set forth inthis agreement, It is therefore agreed as follows: 1 Term of Employment. The Superintendent position is at-will and he shall serve at the pleasure of the Township Board, Subject to the termination provisions set forth in Section nine (9) ofthis agreement shall be for three years, and shall begin September 12, 2019 and shall expire September 12, 2022. This agreement shall not automatically renew. Compensation, The Township shall pay the Superintendent $150,000.00 annually, less Federal, State, FICA, Medicare taxes on a bi-weekly basis, The Board shall annually review the Superintendent's performance, and may increase compensation in subsequent years if they so choose Hours of Work, The Superintendent's duties are carried out primarily during the normal business hours of the Township Hall. However additional duties such as attendance at Township Board meetings, or other efter-hours meetings or appointments will be required, Residency. The Superintendent shall reside in the Township unless this requirement is waived by the Township Board pursuant to MCL 42,11 Dutles and Position, | The Superintendent works under the direction of the Township Board. His responsibility is to implement and administer policies established by the Bord, and to be responsible to the Board for the efficient administration of all departments of the township government, The Board may delegate to him any or all of the following functions and duties which functions and duties, unless so delegated, shall be exercised by the supervisor: ‘Typical duties of the Superintendent shall include, but not be limited to the following: © To serve as the “inhouse” liaison between the township and residents, consultants, attomeys, businesses, builders, developers and other agencies, as well as between employees and the Township Board, © To coordinate the work of township employees, consultants, and contractual services: as,personnel director through the implementation and administration of tons personnel policies, © To actively negotiate employee contracts for submittal to the Township Board for ection. Page 1 of 4soem oe © To recommend new policies and procedures to promote more efficient operation of township activities and responsibilities. © To prepare and administer the annual budget under policies formulated by the Township Board. © To oversee all public improvements, works and undertakings of the township. © To see that all terms end conditions imposed in favor of the township or its inhabitants in any public utility, franchise or in any contract are faithfully kept and performed. © To see that all laws and township ordinances are enforced. © To conduct, in coordination with the finance director, all sales of personal property which the township authorizes for sale. © To attend all meetings of the Township Board, unless excused by the Board, with the right to participate in discussion, but without the right to vote. © To coordinate with department heads on action items, recommendations, and presentations to the township board. © To perform such other duties as may be prescribed or required by ordinance, by direction of the Township Board, or which are not assigned to office, township employee or elected official. Indemnification. To the fullest extent permitted by law, Township shall defend, save harmless and indemnify the Superintendent against any tort, professional liability claim or demand or other legal action, whether groundless or otherwise, arising out of an alleged act or omission occurring in the performance of the Superintendent's duties. The Township shall not indemnify and hold harmless the Superintendent from and with respect to any claim or liability for which the conduct of the Superintendent is found by the courts to have been grossly negligent or intentional wrongful conduct. Benefits. The Township shall provide Superintendent with the opportunity to participate in the following benefits: a. Medical, Dental, and Vision Insurance Coverage. The Superintendent and his eligible dependents may participate in the Township medical, dental, and vision insurance plans during the term of his employment, but shall contribute 20% to health care premiums. In lieu of healthcare, the Superintendent may elect to receive $1,200. annually, Page 2 of 4‘ i da Sickness/Accident/Short Term/ Long Term Disability Coverage. The Superintendent may participate in any Township sick/accident short/long term disability plans. Worker's Compensation. The Superintendent may participate in any Township Workers Compensation plan. Retirement. The Superintendent may participate in an established defined contribution retirement plan established by the Township Board, with benefits as assigned by the plan. The Township’s contribution to the pension plan times the base ‘wage shall be fifteen (15%) percent. At his option, he may participate in the Township's 457 Plan, or any plan or program so offered by the Township, with no matching contribution from the Township. Life Insurance. The Township shall maintain a term life insurance policy on the Superintendent in the amount of one times the annual salary of the Superintendent payable to his beneficiary or beneficiaries upon death, during the term of this contract, Paid Time Off. The Township shall provide the Superintendent with a yearly allocation of sick, personal, vacation and bereavement time in the following amounts: 1, Holiday Time — The Township shall provide the Superintendent with the following eleven (11) paid holidays: January 1, Good Friday, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day and the following Friday, December 24, December 25, December 26 and December 31. 2, Sick/Personal Time ~ 13 days. Up to five unused days may be carried forward per year, but banked days shall not exceed fifteen (15) days. Unused days have no compensation value, 3. Vacation Time ~25 days. Vacation time may be taken at times selected by the Superintendent, with the prior approval of the Township Supervisor. Unused vacation time cannot be carried over and has no compensation value 4, Bereavement Time ~ The Superintendent shall be excused with pay for the appropriate number of days as follows: Spouse or children ~$ days Grandparents, parents, brothers or sisters — 3 days Grand children, aunts, uncles or in-laws —3 days Page 3 of 4oo ORR SI ene, we 10. WL g Business Expenses. Certain expenses of non-personal and job-related nature will necessarily be incurred by the Superintendent in the performance of his duties. The Township will pay or reimburse such business expenses as authorized by the Supervisor upon receipt of duly executed expense or petty cash vouchers, receipts, statements or personal affidavits. Superintendent to Devote Full Time to Township. The Superintendent will devote full time, attention, and energies to the business of the Township and, during this employment, will not engage in any other business activity, regardless of whether such activity is pursued for profit, gain, or other pecuniary advantage that is directly related to the Township's business, while the Superintendent is employed with the Township. Termination of Employment. The Superintendent serves at the pleasure of the Township Board, Without cause, the Township Board may terminate this Agreement at any time upon seven (7) days written notice to the Superintendent, In that event, the Township shall pay the Superintendent on the effective date of the termination a severance amount of three (3) months’ salary less taxes and social security required to be withheld, In addition, for up to three months following termination the Superintendent and his dependents may continue to participate in the Township health care plans he and his dependents are enrolled in on the date of termination. The Superintendent may terminate employment upon sixty (60) days written notice to the Township, but in that event no severance or benefits are owed. Severability. Should any section of this Agreement be determined to be unenforceable and/or void, that limited portion of the Agreement shall be treated as being severed and separated from the balance of the Agreement, which shall have continuing full force and effect, Modifications or Amendments. This agreement shall only be modified or amended by a writing signed by duly authorized representatives of both parties. Acknowledgement Signed this et day of, Serres _, 2019 Supers By: Charter Toxfachip ene —— By; Scott Bennett, Supervisor py:__Cachering Kane, Catherine Lane, Clerk Page 4 of 4Exhibit 2set ich ‘Subscribe Weather w Mechigar lint Grand Blanc Township trustees gave themselves a $4,000 bonus Posted Feb 18, 2020 Scott Bennett. Grand Blanc Township supervisor, speaks at a press conference before a tour of the new Magna electronics manufacturing facility on Wednesday, Aug. 14, 2019 in Grand Blane Township. (Jake May | MLive.com) Jake May | MLive.com Jake May | MLive.com im Please support local journalism you can rely on.“ARR WE By Emilly Davis | [email protected] GRAND BLANC, MI-- Grand Blanc Township Supervisor Scott Bennett won't be accepting his share of a bonus the board of trustees recently gave themselves. Instead, he said he’s going to use it to plant flowers. The resolution was not on the agenda at the December meeting when the Grand Blanc Township Board of Trustees voted to give themselves a bonus of around $4,000 for each member per year, totaling $28,000. “When you look at the issue, | think there's no question that the trustee pay needed to be looked at,” Bennett said. “However, | was just opposed to how it was done more than that, | think it needed to have a longer look and have it on the agenda, so the public was aware,” The issue arose at a Dec. 10 meeting when Trustee Joe Massey made a last-minute motion to amend that night's agenda to vote on increasing pay for trustees, a video record of the meeting shows. “We approved the agenda earlier,” Bennett told Massey at the meeting, “but | guess we could make a motion to amend the agenda. What would you like to amend it to?” “I move that a stipend payment of $4,000 be paid to each board member, paid out this month,” Massey said. Trustee Lonnie Adkins immediately supported the motion. Other board members seemed confused by the sudden motion, however. “Iwould like an explanation,” Clerk Cathy Lane said at the meeting. “I just don’t know what this is about at all or why it came up.” Massey said the payment was for additional duties the board had to take on “in the Past and the future” for issues such as establishing the township's new parks and recreation department. Grand Blanc township and city splitting up again -- this time parks and rec department “We anticipate more workload then we've had,” Massey said during the meeting. “In the last few months we've had a lot of workload, in the future we're gonna have more Piease support local journalism you can rely on.Trustee Al Mansour clarified that the motion was being made because “a number of board members have spent a number of Saturdays” meeting over the past couple months to iron out details of the parks and recreation transition. Mansour made an amendment to the motion to add increasing the in-lieu-of health insurance payments for the clerk and treasurer from $1,200 to $3,500. The motion passed 4-3, with Bennett, Lane and Treasurer Earl Guzak dissenting. The general fund budget was amended to transfer unspent funds from an unfilled information technology position for both the one-time stipend and the increased in- lieu-of health insurance payments. Before the bonus, trustees were making $5,702 a year, Township Superintendent Dennis Liimatta provided MLive-The Flint Journal with a salary list of comparable part-time township boards which shows that Grand Blanc Township's pay is near the lower end of the spectrum. For example, trustees in Davison Township, which had a 2010 population of 19,575 compared to Grand Blanc Township's 37,508, make $14,730 a year. “There's no doubt that the trustees at Grand Blanc Township were one of the lowest Paid trustees for comparable communities around us,” Liimatta said “I think the Objection to everybody wasn't so much what they were paid, but more the process.” In cases of increasing compensation, Liimatta said, it's more typical for a board to increase compensation before an election for the next board's term, not the current term. “That way you don't know if you're gonna win election or if you're not, that way nobody's going to accuse you of anything,” Liimatta said. In the future, Bennett says the board will be looking at the salary for the next term of trustees, so whoever gets elected in the following summer and fall will start at the salary set by the board. In the meantime, Bennett said he’s using his $4,000 bonus to make improvements around the township with a beautification committee. Although Lane and Guzak voted against the motion with Bennett, they did not deny i Please support local journalism you can rely on.a, While he's not exactly sure yet what the committee's beautification efforts will entail, Bennett said he'll be meeting with residents this week to find out what they'd like to see around the township. Ideally, he'd like to implement a program to plant flowers around the township every year. “Iwant to make it a sustained thing, not a one-time deal,” Bennett said. Note to readers: if you purchase something through one of our affiliate inks we may earn a commission. Registration on or use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement. Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement, and Your California Privacy Rights (each updated ADVANCE ae LOCAL © 2020 Advance Local Media LLC. 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