Tyrone Borough has released a statement from its Pittsburgh-based attorney Robert Durrant, in reaction to a closed-door meeting with Blair County Judge Elizabeth Doyle.
The judge met with borough attorneys and an attorney representing former manager Nathan George to deal with motions filed by both sides regarding an employment dispute.
The dispute stems from George’s contention he was improperly fired at an executive session out of the public view. He’s also contended he was fired without cause and that the action was “retaliatory.”
The borough claims it did nothing wrong and fired George “with cause” at a open public meeting.
Here’s is the borough’s statement:
“We think the public is best served if, by reading media summaries of complex events, it can achieve a fair understanding of what has occurred.
“To that end, the following three points are an accurate and thorough summary of what occurred as a result of Thursday’s discussions, under the supervision of Judge Doyle, of the procedural issues in the matter of George v. Tyrone Borough, et al:
“(1) There will be no pre-complaint discovery. This had been requested by Nathan George. (2) There will be no court order issued to the defendant, Tyrone Borough, to preserve potential evidence. This had been requested by the plaintiff and (3) the plaintiff is to expeditiously file his complaint, as requested by the defendants, so the issues can be resolved by the legal system.
“The defendants are confident of prevailing in the legal system. This confidence is based upon law and the acts. In dismissing the plaintiff, the defendants did not violate the law, including but not limited to the Sunshine Act, and that is what the facts and evidence will demonstrate.
“There are at least two sides to every story. Mr. George has been very eager to put his side of the story before the public (while the defendants hands have been tied behind their backs) and has done so at every opportunity.
“There is another side to the story and now that the defendants have succeeded in there objective of forcing the plaintiff to formally file his complaint that side of the story is going to come out. The sooner Mr. George files his complaint, the sooner the full story will be revealed.
“The legal system does not work quickly-but, it does work thoroughly-and this fact insures that the public will, with patience, be able to achieve an informed view as to what has occurred.
“Until then we would like the public to remember that it cannot have an informed view simply by taking at face value the unproven accusations of Mr. George and his attorney.
“Accusations are a dime-a-dozen-proof and truth are quite different. The borough was very pleased with the outcome of Thursday’s hearing.”
