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Hernando Today

Dupre Campaign Inquiry Broadens

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By MICHAEL D. BATES

Published: January 7, 2008

BROOKSVILLE - BROOKSVILLE - Hernando County Commissioner Rose Rocco is calling for a review of county disciplinary procedures.
The move comes on the heels of an inquiry into Human Resources Director Barbara Dupre's handling of an administrative rebuke for displaying election campaign forms in her office.
That incident has since broadened to include allegations from Dupre that a county commissioner was involved in the surreptitious search of her government office.
Former County Administrator Gary Kuhl said in an Oct. 8 letter that Dupre exercised poor judgment in keeping the cards — at least one of which was completed by one of her employees — on a desk in her office.
In that letter, Kuhl asked Dupre to confine her political activities to outside the workplace and on her own time. He also asked a copy of that letter be placed in Dupre's personnel file.
However, the letter didn't get placed there until last Friday, after a Hernando Today reporter confronted Dupre about the letter's existence.
Rocco said she has a problem with the three-month delay and the propriety of having Dupre handle her own disciplinary letters.
And while Dupre believes Kuhl's letter was not disciplinary, Rocco said there is no other way to interpret it.
"If it was important enough to be in her file, it was meant to be a disciplinary letter," Rocco said. "The fact that the letter was not in the file, yes, that does bother me. I was surprised to hear it was not."
Rocco said she also talked to Kuhl about the campaign incident in October and he told her it was "more of a disciplinary action than anything else" and that it was to go into her personnel file.
Contacted at his new job in the public works department in Sumter County last week, Kuhl concurred that the letter was meant to be placed by Dupre in her file. That directive was also noted in the letter.
So why didn't it get in the file?
Dupre said there had not been time to file it.
Rocco is relying on Interim County Administrator Larry Jennings to get clear answers.
"If she was told by the administrator to have that entered into her file, then that is where it should have been," Rocco said.
In light of this matter, Rocco said she will ask for a review of the county's disciplinary procedures, including how long it takes to file a discipline and who is responsible for doing so.
For example, as human resources director, perhaps someone else should have been responsible for filing such notices in her personnel record, she said.
Jennings said Monday he will investigate the incident further. He specifically wants to know how the Kuhl letter was supposed to be handled and if there were any other issues related to county personnel policy that could have been violated.
Jennings said Dupre showed poor judgment in leaving the cards out in full view in her office.
"Displaying cards in open view in a county office does not give the kind of impression that we want to give," Jennings said.
Jennings said Dupre's employees told him Monday their supervisor did not ask them to sign a candidate petition card either on or off the courthouse premises.
Some employees indicated they attended a social function where Dupre was present and the cards were left out on a table, Jennings said. He believes it was at that function where some of the cards got signed.
Jennings said he is also obligated to investigate Dupre's charge that County Commissioner Diane Rowden or someone she knew gained entry into her office and found the cards.
He said he is also looking into whether any policy was broken by Dupre by not promptly placing Kuhl's letter into her personnel file.
Jennings said, based on his interpretation of the letter, it should have been put there.
"The letter was not, in my opinion, a letter of reprimand," he said. "It was a letter of caution, of guidance, in saying that she used poor judgment in having the cards out."
County Commissioner Jeff Stabins said the entire matter "does not cast a positive light on the county."
"It's not a good situation — there's no doubt about it," Stabins said, referring to Dupre's accusations against Rowden, the failure to file Kuhl's letter and the presence of the campaign cards in Dupre's office.
County Commissioner David Russell said, as far as he is concerned, the Dupre matter has been investigated, she has been cleared of violating any personnel policies and the issue is closed.
"This county has far more pressing issues to focus on rather than these petty personnel issues," Russell said.
Russell said he has no problem with Dupre or a government employee campaigning for candidates "as long as it doesn't conflict with their work" and it is done off hours.
Verlindia Doss, deputy executive director for the Florida Commission on Ethics, would not comment on individual cases unless a formal complaint to her office has been filed and investigated.
However, Doss said all government employees are bound by Florida Statutes, which state that no public officer "shall corruptly use or attempt to use his or her official position (to) secure a special privilege, benefit."
Meanwhile, Rowden on Monday again denied Dupre's allegations that she or anyone she knows illegally searched Dupre's office.
Rowden said she alerted Kuhl about the campaign petition cards after receiving an anonymous tip.
She said she will defer doing anything more pending the results of Jennings's investigation.

Reporter Michael D. Bates can be reached at 352-544-5290 or mbates@hernandotoday.com.

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