OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — The division between Ottawa County commissioners and the man they hired to lead the county is growing.
John Gibbs is responding through his attorney to allegations following a seven-page letter Chairperson Joe Moss shared just a few days ago.
The county administrator, who's on paid leave, claims multiple allegations made against him are false or misleading.
Moss's original documents didn't say who the allegations were made by. On Tuesday, Gibbs's attorney, Noah Hurwitz sent a ten-page letter to FOX 17. Hurwitz wrote that Gibbs alleges Deputy County Administrator Ben Wetmore and Senior Executive Aide Jordan Epperson are the ones who made the accusations against his client, both of whom were hired by Gibbs.
"From a Current Employee A"
"At a meeting on February 12, 2024 entitled 'Performance Improvement Conversation,' Administrator Gibbs insinuated that I needed to be loyal to him and not the Board of Commissioners. Administrator Gibbs made a comment during the meeting which he insinuated terminating my employment if I didn't fight for him."
"False, in part. Mr. Gibbs told Mr. Epperson that loyalty is an important trait in public service and that he needed Epperson to communicate better to achieve goals. Mr. Gibbs never insinuated at any time that Jordan Epperson would be fired."
"From Current Employee B"
"Lewd and Inappropriate Statements about Commissioner Cosby"
"The Administrator has repeated on several occasions, a bizarre theory about Commissioner Gretchen Cosby being 'out of God's grace' because of a perceived pattern of infidelity, specifically accusing her of cheating on her husband with doctors and patients. He said his perception that there were problems in her marriage, because she wasn't always wearing a wedding ring, was likely due to infidelity on her part. I especially noted this comment because I, also, rarely wear my wedding ring and wasn't wearing it at the time. He said it was common knowledge that nurses were unfaithful in their marriages. This seemed to be solely motivated by her reasoned and patient opposition to him. Even though I don't believe Commissioner Cosby is evangelical, he refers to her and other as 'r****d evangelicals.'"
"False. Mr. Gibbs never commented about Commissioner Cosby cheating on her husband, but Messrs. Epperson and Wetmore made statements regarding nurses and the connection to Commissioner Cosby. Mr. Gibbs recalls that Commissioner Cosby comes from a Catholic background, so he never would have made any mention of her being evangelical. In fact, Mr. Gibbs own sister is a Master in Public Health – he would never disparage nurses at large."
Gibbs was hired on Jan. 3, 2023, by the Ottawa Impact majority of commissioners moments after they fired the previous county administrator. County records show that the move cost the county around $270,000 in a severance package.
The current county administrator is also involved in a lawsuit. Court records show that Gibbs is accused of age discrimination while hiring the county's senior executive aide position.
Hurwitz calls this "Misrepresentation. The County is defending itself, and Mr. Gibbs maintains, and the evidence supports, that there was no discrimination."
Moss made a statement a few days ago saying they plan to meet this week at a board meeting and discuss what's next for Gibbs. The Board has a regularly scheduled meeting this Thursday. A special hearing continuation has been scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Thursday.
FOX 17 reached out to the county, Epperson and Wetmore for a response.
"Ottawa County will not comment on personnel issues. The Board of Commissioners and John Gibbs, along with their attorneys, need to navigate this matter. We will communicate on our website any continuation of the special hearing related to Mr. Gibbs," the Ottawa County communications director told FOX 17.
"This is completely false. Outrageous and defamatory comments made by Mr. Gibbs are easily disprovable," Epperson said.
Gibbs blasts back after allegations against him are released by WXMI on Scribd
We have yet to hear back from Wetmore.
