The Clark County Commission filed a complaint regarding Hale to the Ohio Ethics Commission, which this summer completed its investigation of Hale and his relationship with West Jefferson.
“It’s important that when Clark County sees something that it perceives as wrongdoing that we take those actions with the Ohio Ethics Commission,” the Clark County Commission said in a statement. “We want to make sure our employees and staff understand certain actions are not appropriate.”
Legal representation for West Jefferson declined a request for comment.
Jeremy Tomb, an attorney representing Hale, said those involved in the suit “reached a mutually agreeable resolution,” but declined to comment further.
The Springfield News-Sun obtained the settlement agreement using Ohio public records laws.
The investigation found that Hale violated conflicts of interest provisions in the Ohio Revised Code when he served as the director of community and economic development in Clark County, applied for employment with the Village of West Jefferson as its building, zoning and planning director and continued to participate in matters regarding West Jefferson as a Clark County employee.
The Clark County Commission in May 2020 also filed a lawsuit in the Madison County Court of Common Pleas against West Jefferson and Hale for interference with a contract and breach of contract.
The lawsuit alleged Hale used Clark County time and resources to negotiate a job for himself, interfered with Clark County’s contracts with other governments and used connections to encourage other governments to contract with West Jefferson while knowing the village would possibly be his future employer, according to the suit.
Clark County had contracts with other communities – West Jefferson, London and Madison County – for planning, zoning and building inspection services. The county generated more than $500,000 in contracts with outside communities in 2018 alone, according to the lawsuit.
All three municipalities ended their contracts with Clark County in 2019, and another contract with Plain City fell through earlier that year after Hale told county officials it “was not going to work out,” according to the suit.
Clark County officials learned through a July 17 Columbus Messenger article that West Jefferson had contracted London, Madison County and also Plain City for services with a new department, headed by Hale.
Hale and the village settled the lawsuit with the Clark County Commission in March this year. The village had to pay $175,000 to Clark County, according to court records.
Hale agreed to accept the reprimand from the Ohio Ethics Commission in lieu of the case being forwarded to a prosecutor, according to the settlement agreement. No criminal charges have been filed against Hale.
Susan Willeke, the education and communications administrator for the Ohio Ethics Commission, said settlement agreements widely vary: they can include an agreement to resign from public office, the requirement of paying back money, or a promise to take ethics training courses and more. Sometimes a settlement agreement contains simply a public reprimand.
“A public reprimand is essentially saying: I acknowledge I did this ... I get that this document where I’m acknowledging where I stepped outside the boundaries of the law is public record,’” she said.
Clark County government employees undergo ethics training and it’s “very clear… how they’re supposed to act in the setting of public service,” according to the Clark County Commission.
“The bottom line is that Mr. Hale acted inappropriately, and the Ohio Ethics Commission supported that with their decision,” according to the Clark County Commission’s statement.
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