Odd goings on in Adams County Coroner’s office – Cleaning house or carrying out a vendetta?
January 14th, 2011
Immediately after being sworn into office, Adams County Coroner Monica Broncucia-Jordan fired nine staffers.
One would have hoped that with James Hibbard gone from the Adams County Coroner’s office things would settle down. That is not the case as less than 48 hours after being sworn in new coroner Monica Broncucia-Jordan fired nine staffers apparently without cause.
There is little doubt the county coroner’s office was a disaster in recent years. Charges of sexual harassment, failure to properly conduct autopsies, hiring of inexperienced investigators (including one from a strip club), and the misplacement of bodies were but some of the issues.
In comes Democrat Broncucia-Jordan, a relative to current County Commissioner Alice Nichol, fresh off winning her November election. She is sworn in on Tuesday and virtually immediately locks nine staff members out of the building (literally) telling them if they want a job they will need to reapply for it.
Broncucia-Jordan told 7News, “This is my way of evaluating the staff and making sure that the best services are provided to the citizens of Adams County.”
Gee, that sounds like someone I want to work for.
Was this warranted given the previous problems with the office? Or is Broncucia-Jordan, who still has a lawsuit pending against Adams County, carrying out a vendetta against the staffers? Is decimating the coroner’s office the way to make sure “that the best services are provided to the citizens of Adams County”?
Whatever the reason, the action is odd and very questionable. Broncucia-Jordan herself told 7News, “I don’t have any specific issues with any specific individuals.”
If there aren’t any “specific issues” then why fire nine people?
It may very well be that a clean sweep of the coroner’s office is warranted as questionable hiring practices under the previous coroner were known to exist. However this action sure doesn’t look good in the public eye, especially given the troubled history.
Perhaps the most troubling statement made by Broncucia-Jordan was in regards to her desire to keep her actions quiet. She said, “It’s not what I preferred. I was hoping to keep this a little bit more private, but here we are.”
That sounds an awful lot like the typical good ol’ boy, keep it quiet kind of scandal that Adams County and its Democrat-dominated leadership has become infamous for.
On the net: Coroner’s Staffers Fear Last Day Is Here; New Adams County Boss Ready To ‘Clean House’ (7News)
Don’t miss: The troubles we have seen – Scandals and mismanagement mark Adams County’s recent past
I was at the Coroner’s Office repairing equipment when all of this happened. Before Monica said, “It’s not what I preferred. I was hoping to keep this a little bit more private….” She told reporters that she was hoping to extend the courtesy to the staff of not having to find out on tv. They obviously didn’t air that part. If you saw the office when she came in, you would understand why she did this. Hibbard let that office go. We had to fix almost everything. I bet the equipment was the worst of the problems she found. By the way, someone should ask Dr. Arnall if he would have done the same thing. He hasn’t objected. He also has a lawsuit against Adams County. He and Monica were terminated for the same reason at the same time. That office needed cleaned up along time ago and I doubt her Republican opponent would have done differently. Remember CBS4? Strippers, Village Inn, nannies, with no formal education. That office has been quiet because Hibbard got rid of everyone that would expose his mistakes. That’s why there’s more than just Arnall and Monica suing because of Hibbard. I also heard Monica say that she’s under federal court order preventing her from discussing the lawsuit. That’s interesting. Maybe if she wasn’t ordered not to talk about it, she would have been able to defend this decision. Now that Monica’s back I bet Hibbard’s mistakes will creep out from under the rug.
I’m in law enforcement and there are good reasons why Monica made that decision. She just can’t talk about it. If you’re unsure of her decision why don’t you request the applications of the employees that she let go? Their applications are public record. I think you’ll be shocked when you see them. I was.
[...] January 2011 – New Adams County Coroner fires staff after being sworn in. Well it sure didn’t take long for yet another controversy to hit the County Coroner’s office. Less than 48 hours after being sworn in new coroner Monica Broncucia-Jordan fired nine staffers apparently without cause. Whatever the reason, the action is odd and very questionable. Broncucia-Jordan herself told 7News, “I don’t have any specific issues with any specific individuals.” (Story) [...]