Woman who investigates whistleblower cases blows whistle on city bosses
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The city of Pittsburgh investigator in charge of probing retaliation complaints against city managers has sued her employer -- for retaliation.
A complaint filed late Thursday by Tammy L. Sabina, 42, in the Western District of U.S. District Court, alleges that her supervisors at the city's Office of Municipal Investigations interfered with her work, disciplined her, and left her "on the ... payroll but with no work to do" for the past year.
The case offers a rare look into OMI, to which many a complaint about city employee conduct is referred -- but from which little public information emanates.
"This is a lawsuit with a lot of public importance to it," said attorney Jay Hornak, who represents Ms. Sabina, 42, of Brookline.
Mr. Hornak noted that OMI is supposed to investigate, and thereby deter, misconduct by city workers. "I think that the public should become aware of how that goal is not being met," he said.
City Solicitor Daniel Regan said Friday that his office hasn't reviewed the complaint, and typically doesn't comment on litigation. City officials, though, noted that Ms. Sabina took her allegations to the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, which didn't find violations.
OMI's 10 employees review complaints against city workers by their colleagues or others, and sustain or dismiss them. Department directors then decide on any punishment.
Ms. Sabina, hired in 2000, investigated claims of discrimination, harassment and retaliation, usually by one city employee against another. She alleges in the complaint that OMI Director Kathy Kraus and city Assistant Solicitor Wendy Kobee failed to act on complaints, halted investigations, and ordered her to remove from a file pornographic material found at a city work site during a sexual harassment investigation.
Ms. Sabina and her bosses clashed over a host of cases in recent years.
One was the 2007 firing of city Public Works Department laborer Homer Dennison, who was accused of coming to work under the influence of alcohol.
When Mr. Dennison challenged the firing and took the case to the city's Human Relations Commission, Ms. Sabina testified on his behalf. She told the commission that the city violated its own procedures for demanding alcohol tests, singling out Mr. Dennison because he often filed grievances.
First Published May 1, 2010 12:00 am
