October 10, 2021
A BIZARRE Resignation
MILWAUKEE || A press conference via WISN, Channel 12, and letter appeared from a NEW hiree - 8-weeks of the city attorney's office of Milwaukee. The RESIGNATION letter's "greeting" was to "City Attorney Staff" and came from Christian Thomas, ex-member of the city attorney's office.
Below comments are made based on comments by Christian Thomas and his documentation in the letter is understood. This is this Milwaukeeans forensic view.
October 1, 2021
Dear City Attorney Staff,
As you have heard, I have resigned after 8 weeks with this office.. Earlier this week I was ordered to write a memo by the end of the day today. In lieu of that memo I write this letter so
that my experience and my resignation is fully documented and understood.
GLASS - Employed for 8 weeks - he had not completed probation.
Christian Thomas opens the door to conflict of interest, misplaced values, failure to follow directions, slander, arrogance, insubordination, failure to follow rules and directives, obstruction, misleading comments, obsession with Naomi Gehling and her assertions of sexual harassment, and not a team player.
In the first paragragraph he misleads. He was given a directive at the beginning of Sepember, 2021 to review files he had possession of for update. Instead of following the request, Thomas went off on a wild-goose chase or conspiracy theory that the city attorney Tearman Spencer was after ex-employee Naomi Gehling.
Thomas was ultimately given a mandate by Deputy City Attorney Yolanda McGowan with a time-certain of "end-of-the-day", October 1, 2021, for compiling a wrapup memo to a review of backlog files in his possession.
THOMAS - When I started, I was assigned a litigation caseload, taking over many of the cases of former ACA Naomi Gehling. That caseload was mostly federal litigation of civil rights (1983) claims against the City and its employees, often involving claims in the millions of dollars. Ms. Gehling has publicly, formally and repeatedly claimed that her departure from this office was due, in part, to sexual harassment by Mr. Spencer.
On either September 8 or 9, 2021, Mr. Spencer came into my office and began asking questions about my cases and their statuses. At one point I commented that I was “putting out a lot of fires” that resulted from cases lingering without an assigned ACA due to the departures of various attorneys. Mr. Spencer asked me for a couple of examples and I responded with information that centered on the lack of ACAs to handle the cases over this past summer. Mr. Spencer then specifically asked me about any failings on the part of Ms. Gehling in how she handled matters or left them upon her departure. Mr. Spencer asked me to draft a memo regarding any failings I saw in those cases.
GLASS - Out of order and Unverified comments regarding the reason for case buildup due to departures. Gave the opinion that City Attorney Spencer was on a mission to "nail" Naomi Gehling only.
Thomas inherited Gehling files. She had the bulk of federal files in backlog (1983) and sought to update them.
City Attorney Spencer inherited a significant number of files in backlog when he took office. The City Attorney requested a memo regarding all the files tHOMAS was reviewing. Thomas's comments made it seem as if some "clandestine" reason rather than updating files.
THOMAS - At that point the public fight between Mr. Spencer and Ms. Gehling was well known. Mr. Spencer's request immediately struck me as politically-motivated, retaliatory and inappropriate. Mr. Spencer’s inquiries were not about the multi-million-dollar claims that I was now defending, or how the office could assist me in taking over that advocacy. The inquiries were about the past performance of an attorney making allegations against him. I tried to laugh off the request, but did say directly, “I think work requests are supposed 10 come through my Deputy.”
GLASS - Thomas failed to follow protocol. Took off on a tangent of what his "runaway" mind was telling him that was retaliatory - BIZARRE. He failed to follow the directive given by the head of the city's attorney's office.
THOMAS - On Friday September 10, Mr. Spencer came by my office again. He again
reiterated his request that I draft a memo, referring to his previous request.
I demurred and again referred him to my Deputy, Ms. McGowan, noting that I am
in frequent communication with her about my cases and their concerns.
GLASS - Thomas failed the directive and was "insubordinate" with his "demurred" and referred the City Attorney to his deputy. The word demur means "to object"; a demurrer is the document that makes the objection
THOMAS - On Tuesday, September 14, I spoke with Ms. McGowan regarding Mr.
Spencer's request. I informed Ms.
McGowan that I was uncomfortable with the request, that it seemed politically
motivated and retaliatory and that did not understand how it would help advance
the interest of my cases to create a backward-looking memo that laid out
possible procedural liabilities of the cases. It was my assumption that Ms.
McGowan would provide “cover” for me to focus on my casework. I was wrong. Ms.
McGowan informed me that as there was a colorable argument that such a memo
could be construed aide in office management, that I should complete the memo.
No timeline was set. decided to focus on my casework.
GLASS - Thomas continued to DISREGARD directive and failed the directive by City Attorney Spencer and follow up of directive Deputy City Attorney YOLANDA MCGOWAN.
As far as Thomas informing Deputy City Attorney McGowan about being uncomfortable with the Memo request by McGowan and City Attorney Spencer of files he was originally assigned the directive for a BACKLOG UPDATE.
Thomas instead said the directive was "politically motivated and retaliatory" and he did not see how it would help advance the interest of his cases to create a backward-looking memo that laid out possible procedural liabilities of the cases. It was here that Thomas was informed by McGowan that the memo could be construed to aide in office management and that he should complete the memo.
Thomas was informed by Deputy City Attorney McGowan that as there was a colorable argument that such a memo could be construed to aide in office management, that I should complete the memo.
Thomas - On Tuesday, September 28, | again had a meeting with Ms. McGowan.
During that meeting Ms. McGowan reprimanded me for failing to complete the
requested memo, noting that I had been previously ordered three times to
complete it. I responded that, while it was on my list of to-dos, it did not have
a deadline and I was currently swamped with higher-priority case work,
including deadlines in federal cases that were blown long before I started with
this office (which post-date Ms. Gehling’s departure). Ms. McGowan stated that
she would have hoped that I would prioritize any request from Mr. Spencer and
ordered me to complete the memo by close of business today October 1.
GLASS - Thomas was in defiance of 3 direct orders - City Attorney Tearman Spencer and Deputy City Attorney Yolanda McGowan. For all intents and purposes, Thomas was AWOL. and refusing the directives of top management without cause.
Deputy City Attorney McGowan stated that she would have hoped that Thomas would prioritize any request from City Attorney Spencer and therefore ordered Thomas to complete the memo by close of business day October 1,
THOMAS - Due to this conversation, and this directive, I submitted my resignation the following morning. I will not be writing any such memo.
There are certain undeniable facts about this situation that fly in the
face of the integrity with which I pride myself. Mr. Spencer is being accused
very publicly by Ms. Gehling of, among other things, sexual harassment. I was
given much of Ms. Gehling’s caseload. Mr. Spencer asked me to document failings
regarding prior counsel in my cases, specifically inquiring about Ms. Gehling.
I demurred, then objected, but was ultimately ordered to complete that memo as a
priority over the millions of dollars of cases I am otherwise defending on behalf
of the City. That is an intolerable abuse of power and I will not be a party to
it.
GLASS - In the last paragraph, Thomas's mixed-and-matched comments lack focus.
The closing comments lack TRUTH-TELLING, TRUST, CLARITY, RELEVANCE, COMPLIANCE, and WORTHINESS. It is missing documentation as he promised at the outset of his RESIGNATION letter.
Thomas's comments led the public to think that he was referring to City Attorney Spencer who requested the by the end of day October 1, 2021 memo.
When it was a mandate given by Deputy City Attorney McGowan due to Thomas's deliberate failure to follow protocol and complete a task given by the head of the city attorney's office and deputy Mcgowan over weeks. He was intentionally obtuse and appeared to have had another agenda that included framing.
THOMAS - I wish I could have survived here longer. I wish you all the best.
Respectfully,
Atty. Christian Thomas
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This guy seems to have brought some of the same behavior as the original bad actors leftover from the previous administration. The mob-type disgruntles and disrespectful Jason Pizer types seem to still be in the air. The memo from the People is:
We elected TEARMAN SPENCER to the office of City Attorney of Milwaukee - 69% to 39%.
We like his commitment:
-Tearman Spencer
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Forensic View by
Mary Glass - MPA-LLC
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