Two former College Park employees say they left their recent grievance hearings last week frustrated and dismayed, still unclear about why they were terminated and questioning the fairness of the process.
Rose Stewart, former director of human resources and risk management, and Jerry Silver, former code enforcement supervisor, had separate hearings last Thursday as part of their efforts to challenge their terminations. Both were fired in May along with former city manager Emmanuel Adediran, Veronica Brown, former purchasing administrator, and Shawn Hightower, former code enforcement officer.
Stewart and Silver said their hearings offered no meaningful opportunity to get answers. They were not allowed to ask questions of interim city manager Lindell Miller, who served as the hearing officer, or a city attorney, who officiated the hearing.
“I asked [Interim HR Director] Christa Gilbert, ‘Do you know of any violations that I committed?’ She couldn’t name any,” Stewart said. “Even as an at-will employer, there should be a reason for terminating somebody. I’ve never terminated anyone without a reason.”
Silver expressed similar concerns. “They said I served at will. I said, ‘That doesn’t explain what you’ve done if I’ve done everything to meet my job,” he said.
Silver told SaportaReport that as code enforcement supervisor, there were over $60,000 in fines collected, 375 tickets were issued to one apartment complex and 500 to another, and he recruited new employees. He also claimed he was pressured to hire an unqualified candidate but refused.
Both Stewart and Silver said they believe their terminations were retaliatory. They have said that they were targeted for refusing to engage in unethical practices.
Adding to their frustration, Stewart noted, “They wouldn’t even allow us to go into each other’s hearings. We are allowed a representative, but we couldn’t support one another.”
Stewart and Silver said they plan to bring their cases before the mayor and city council — the next step in the grievance process if Miller does not rule in their favor within 15 days. Neither expects a favorable decision from Miller, given what they described as a lack of meaningful participation from her in the hearings.
Meanwhile, Hightower, who was present outside the hearings to show support, has filed his own grievance but is still waiting for a hearing date. Hightower has shared documents, including a temporary protective order and a charge of discrimination with SaportaReport, saying he endured this treatment from an official in 2023. He said the situation escalated to the point that he was not even allowed inside city hall to do his job.
College Park has declined to comment on employees’ firings.
All of the terminated employees have said they are considering legal action against the city.
Officer Hightower has the strongest case due to him being repeatedly harassed by Councilor Roderick Gay. Councilman Gay wrote emails about preventing Hightower from entering city hall and threatening to fire him if he sees him in public. Councilman Gay waited for his moment to have the political power to have Officer Hightower fired. Councilman Gay was mad about him removing his wife illegal political signs in the right away. Officer Silver was wrong about one thing… you can indeed get fired for doing your job right.