This week, Antioch Unified School District employee Ken Turnage II has filed a lawsuit against the school district. Turnage is currently on unpaid leave pending termination.
Dubbed “bully boss” by local news media and some members of the school district, Turnage lawsuit is claiming the district was in violation of the labor code and reporting by school employees. The lawsuit specifically names the AUSD, the School Board, Trustee Antonio Hernandez and human resources director Robert Martinez. Up to 10 more people could be named in the lawsuit based on what the investigation finds during discovery.
A day after being served with the lawsuit, Martinez turned in his retirement papers with the Antioch Unified School District which is slated for May. Martinez, is the human resources director, who also served as the interim superintendent after the Board agreed to separation with former superintendent Stephanie Anello.
The “bully boss” dates back the first known complaint in January 2023 when a desk was placed on a roof months earlier — which ultimately had District approval for the prank. In an NBC Bay Area story, retired Antioch Unified welder Tom Sellers admits he gave the greenlight to the desk prank. Nearly 9-months later, in Sept. 2023, Kim Atkinson spoke at a school board meeting which former Trustee Clyde Lewis says the board would look into it. Atkinson then spoke again months later during another school board meeting stating she had 24 examples of a hostile environment — that is when Martinez said nothing nor corrected the misinformation. This then prompted the ‘bully boss” media frenzy, including a separation of then superintendent Stephanie Anello.
The lawsuit is based on:
- RETALIATION IN VIOLATION OF LABOR CODE § 1102.5 (Against District and Does 1-10)
- VIOLATION OF “REPORTING BY SCHOOL EMPLOYEES OF IMPROPER GOVERNMENTAL ACTIVITIES ACT” (Against all defendants)
- FALSE LIGHT INVASION OF PRIVACY
- DEFAMATION
- INTENTIONAL INFLICTION OF EMOTIONAL DISTRESS (Against Defendant Hernandez and Does 1-5)
According to the 19-page lawsuit, it alleged that after Martinez completed an investigation into misconduct which he wrote:
“none of the witnesses provided evidence that Mr. Turnage engaged in behavior that was pervasive in nature was directed at Mr. Kesser, that included any derogatory words or comments, were related to any protected class, nor disparaged Mr. Kesser in any manner.” Mr. Martinez concluded also that a single alleged incident of a prank involving the placement of Mr. Kesser’s desk was inappropriate, but not mal-intended.”
However, the suit claims Martinez did nothing to correct false information or limit the spread misrepresentations, not in fact used it as a way to take action against Turnage:
“When Kimberly Atkinson who is also the Union president Brian Atkinson’s wife (both District employees), publicly and purposefully misrepresented the report’s findings at Board meetings in 2023 and 2024, to the effect that Mr. Turnage was found to be a bully and in violation of numerous District policies, Mr. Martinez as Director of Human Resources could have set the record straight, based on his findings and their affirmation by a third-party investigator, and privately admonished the Atkinsons to cease making such false statements. Instead, as discussed further herein, the District has not only allowed this false narrative to persist, but it has also used it as a premise to retaliate against Mr. Turnage by, ultimately, suspending him without pay and seeking his dismissal for opposing such misconduct by District employees and members of the District Board including its president, Mr. Hernandez.”
The suit cites many times where Martinez stated “protecting the process” only to have the Antioch Unified School District board of education not follow the process and procedures.
“In particular, Mr. Hernandez, Board member Jaguanana Lathan, Kim Atkinson, Brian Atkinson and likely others made improper statements about private personnel matters concerning Mr. Turnage in public comments to the Board and to members of the public, in violation of Mr. Turnage’s rights to privacy in his personnel records and process.”
The lawsuit also cites:
- Former Trustee Clyde Lewis in October 2023 said the board would look into bullying – adding to the false narrative and led to media attention and false publications about Turnage.
- After public comments in February 2024, Board Member Lathan stated “I believe you” after this public comment—neglecting protocol. Her response was endorsed the allegations as “truth”.
- In an email to the Board from Turnage, Lathan took a private email and posted it on Facebook.
- In April 2024, Mr. Hernandez, individually and/or in his capacity as Board President of the District, and others, made false, disparaging and unprivileged, and thus defamatory, statements to others regarding Mr. Turnage and his personal and/or professional character and/or professional competence and/or conduct.
- In June 2024, Hernandez took to social media to insert himself into personnel matters. With the post, Mr. Hernandez included a copy of the letter from District Human Resources informing Mr. Hernandez of the confidential complaint made against him by Mr. Turnage. Disregarding the confidential nature of the personnel matter and complaint made by Mr. Turnage, Mr. Hernandez published the letter publicly, violating Mr. Turnage’s privacy rights in his personnel matters, while also falsely describing him as a “bully” and accusing him of misusing school funds to bully and intimidate Mr. Hernandez.
- between April 4, 2024, and June 15, 2024, Board member Jaguanana Lathan also contributed to the false and disparaging comments made about Mr. Turnage on Facebook, and subsequently those were taken down or deleted
- April 22, April 24, May 4, May 7, May 23, June 27, Aug 22, and September 23, 2024. As seen in the articles, District employees, including Mr. Hernandez, Steve Hessler, Bruce Courtemanche and Jim Kesser, contributed to the articles with statements that falsely disparaged Mr. Turnage, directly or implicitly, including falsely depicting him as a “bully boss.” Some of the statements and articles also falsely implied that a special and/or improper “relationship” between Mr. Turnage and (now former) District Superintendent Stephanie Anello was the only reason Mr. Turnage still was employed with the District.
- Accordingly, the District’s immediate suspension and intended dismissal of Mr. Turnage are unlawful.
- On October 22, 2024, Mr. Turnage’s counsel discovered that the District’s Board voted prematurely on Mr. Turnage’s suspension and dismissal because, if it voted at all, it must have done so during its September 25, 2024, Board meeting, before Mr. Turnage was provided his Skelly rights (Skelly v. State Personnel Bd. (1975) 15 Cal.3d 194 and rights afforded by Education Code Section 45113(f)(1) and District Board Policy 4218.1, among other potentially applicable laws, rules or provisions of contract).
- the Board’s decision to suspend Mr. Turnage could not be made until after the Skelly decision.
- Since the Board had not voted on anything since September 25, 2024, it necessarily did not act to suspend Mr. Turnage based upon findings by the Skelly officer “at the conclusion of the review process specified in Skelly v. State Personnel Bd.” Thus, the Board’s premature vote before the Skelly officer’s review and decision renders the Board’s decision to initiate suspension and dismissal without a Skelly void, and the imposition of suspension as of October 16, 2024, is also void at its inception. Further, now that the Board acted prematurely, it tainted and/or revealed the Skelly process as a sham, seemingly pre-orchestrated with a friendly HR administrator from a neighboring school district to give the appearance of neutrality without any actual and substantive due process being afforded.
- All of the foregoing conduct by the District since September 23, 2024, was done with the malicious intent of railroading through Mr. Turnage’s suspension without pay and dismissal, without affording him his procedural and substantive due process rights as required. The suspension and dismissal are also without legitimate substantive factual or legal basis and have been initiated in retaliation for Mr. Turnage making formal complaints against Mr. Hernandez, Kim Atkinson, and her husband Brian Atkinson.
- Therefore, the foregoing conduct by Mr. Hernandez constitutes defamation of Mr. Turnage, and invasion of his privacy rights, while the pending dismissal action was initiated in retaliation for Mr. Turnage’s opposition to and/or reporting of improper/illegal governmental activities in violation of Labor Code 1102.5 and Education Code 44110 et seq., among other possible legal claims.
As for Trustee Antonio Hernandez, Turnage suit alleges Hernandez misused public funds, are libelous on their face which says:
“Defendant Hernandez knew of the falsity of the published statements he made and the harm the statements would have upon Mr. Turnage and his standing in the community, and he made these statements with the intent to harm Mr. Turnage; in the alternative, Mr. Hernandez acted with reckless disregard for the truth of the statements that he made, and/or was negligent in determining the truth of the information he disseminated, and did so with reckless disregard for the harm he would cause to Mr. Turnage in making the statements.”
When reached for comment on the lawsuit, Turnage issued the following statement:
“After much consideration, and with heavy heart, I was compelled to file a lawsuit against my employer, Antioch Unified School District, Antioch School Board of Trustees, and against Board President Antonio Hernandez and now former Interim Superintendent and Director of Human Resources Dr. Rob Martinez. The “Doe” defendants will be named as more information is revealed. My intentions in filing this lawsuit are to reveal the actual truth about my tenure with Antioch Unified School District, where last year’s media fiasco, encouraged and fueled by the School Board and District personnel, grotesquely and falsely portrayed those facts to malign my character and professional reputation. I am hopeful that the court system will provide an objective and fair process to correct these wrongs and set the record straight,” said Kenneth R. Turnage II.
No other information was provided on the lawsuit or statement by Turnage. The amount Turnage is seeking was not disclosed.
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