The Starke County Commissioners last night upheld the June 15th termination of veterans service officer Terry Turner following an executive session grievance hearing.
President of the Commissioners Kent Danford read a brief statement noting that Turner was an at-will employee of the county and his termination was in accordance with Section 5.07-E of the Starke County Employee Handbook:
(e) Generally, County employees may be terminated at will without cause in accordance with the laws of the State of Indiana.
“I will file a claim with the Civil Rights Commission for age discrimination,” Turner told WKVI News after the meeting. “I’ve talked to attorney about filing suit because they’ve violated about four different sections of that employee handbook.”
Turner contends Danford, who initiated his firing during the mid-June meeting, never gave him any verbal or written warnings about his job performance. Turner adds the only complaints he’s received from veterans involve the amount of time it takes the VA to process claims for benefits once they are filed. He says that is beyond the control of any veterans service officer.
Turner did tell the commissioners he wants to either be reimbursed for a printer he purchased for office use or wants the machine back. Commissioner Kathy Norem told him she will check with the auditor tomorrow to see if he was previously reimbursed.
