Apr 6, 2019 5 min read

A Donegal Township municipal worker is asking a Washington County judge to step in and compel township supervisors to follow their own policy.

Township Assistant Secretary-Treasurer Heather Wood’s civil complaint, which her attorney filed in Washington County Court last month, accuses Supervisor Kathleen Croft of having called Wood “incompetent” and “not qualified,” saying that “she doesn’t know what she is doing” and trying to get her fired.

She claimed other supervisors have failed to curtail Croft’s unauthorized meddling in Wood’s work.

“It’s just a mess, is what it is,” said Supervisor Doug Teagarden, the only member of the board who took office prior to last year.

The case is part of a growing body of political and legal conflicts besetting the township of some 2,400 people since Croft and three others – Edward Shingle, Tammi Iams and Michael Smith, who resigned last month – joined the five-member board in January 2018.

Shingle, the board chairman, said he wouldn’t discuss “open litigation” and other aspects of the situation.

“The only thing I can tell you is the same thing I told the public,” he said. “Our system of government is designed to be messy.”

The four ran jointly as representatives of the Donegal Township Freedom Group to oppose zoning rules the previous board enacted.

But in the 16 months since, that caucus has imploded. Supervisors voted during their meeting on March 18 to accept Smith’s resignation, which he’d tendered in a letter earlier that month.

During that same meeting, attorney Christopher Furman from the Washington firm Dennis Makel & Associates resigned on behalf of the firm and left the room.

A video posted to a YouTube account under Croft’s name shows Furman taking questions from Croft and Shingle about the legal bill from the firm before apparently growing frustrated and walking out.

Dennis Makel, the eponymous owner of the Washington law firm, declined to discuss the situation last week.

“We withdrew our representation,” he said.

Supervisors plan to interview potential new solicitors during their April 15 meeting.

Smith said he’d run against zoning on principle and because he considered the zoning provisions the previous board had adopted to be improper for the rural municipality.

But the elective office had become a full-time commitment that was interfering with his farm and his contracting business. He also cited infighting among board members and stress that affected his health as reasons for his decision.

“I’ve never quit anything that I’ve started out to do,” Smith said. “But I had a lot of personal things going on … and with it interfering so much with my self-employment and the farm, it was severely hurting me financially, just with the time.”

Before he resigned, Smith often voted with Iams and Teagarden on matters where board members took different positions.

The remaining four members of the board are divided into two equal voting blocs – Teagarden and Iams in one faction, and Shingle and Croft in the other.

Teagarden said the deadlock complicates things for the township when it comes to resolving Woods’ case.

“You can’t enforce a regulation with two votes,” Teagarden said. “It’s a 2-2 situation.”

He said he’s “just sick” about the situation.

“The big thing is that members lack the understanding of a board member’s authority,” Teagarden said.

Wood accuses Croft of creating a hostile environment since Jan. 14, when Wood started work there.

“Despite repeated requests and opportunity to enforce its official actions, the board of supervisors of Donegal Township and specifically, individual board supervisors, have failed to enforce the township resolutions and official actions of the board, all to the physical and emotional detriment of Wood,” he wrote.

Wood’s attorney, Thomas Lonich, contends the township won’t abide by its own rules.

In an attempt to curb Croft’s behavior, the board adopted a resolution on Jan. 21 that was supposed to reinforce Iams’ authority as the person in charge of the township office and to prevent Croft from getting in the way of Wood’s performance of her duties.

The complaint says Croft wouldn’t relent despite both the policy and instructions from colleagues. Iams is the supervisor appointed to oversee the township administrative office.

Croft didn’t answer an email requesting comment on Friday. Iams didn’t return a message left on her voicemail on Monday.

Wood’s isn’t the only litigation besetting the township. In February, the township appealed an arbitrator’s decision regarding compensatory time for the four road workers, who are represented by the International Union of Operating Engineers.

The grievance that gave rise to that case is one of 14 brought by the union since last year.

Smith said he couldn’t comment on issues that arose before his resignation and are part of the litigation because he still has a duty to township taxpayers. He did say the grievances aren’t solely the fault of supervisors.

“There’s a little bit of blame on both sides of it, I’ll say that much,” he said.

Teagarden said the township spent about $50,000 last year on attorney fees, compared to the $15,000 it used to budget.

“We’re a small township,” he said. “We shouldn’t be having that kind of litigation.”