Suspended Dillon County administrator shows up for work

DILLON — Dillon County Administrator Charles Curry reported for work at 8:27 a.m. Wednesday despite having been suspended Tuesday by Dillon County Council.

Curry said he was told by county attorney Dan Shine council didn’t have the authority under state law to suspend him.

THE LETTERS

Read the communication between Curry and Dillon County Council's legal counsel, click here.

Read this morning's Morning News article on this issue, click here.

Council sent Curry a letter Tuesday saying he was barred from his office and prohibited from using county property.

“I am informed that you have placed certain of your personal information on a Dillon County computer,” attorney Carl Muller wrote to Curry. “You are to leave that alone so that it can be handled properly.”

Muller was hired by the four county council members who voted to oust Curry from the county administrator’s post.

On June 16, council members voted 4-3 to terminate Curry’s contract after he’d been on the job three months.

But nearly a month later, Curry continues to conduct county business as usual because of a state statute that requires a public hearing to be held on the matter before his termination is final.

Curry said Wednesday morning he will talk later today with his personal attorney about his legal options.

Dillon County Council Chairman Harold Moody said Wednesday he wasn’t aware of Curry’s suspension until Tuesday, when Shine called and told him that the fax informing Curry of his suspension had been delivered.

“There are ongoing negotiations between Dillon County attorney Dan Shine, Carl Muller, of Wyche Burgess Freeman & Parham P.A. in Greenville, and Ms. Altman Byrd, Curry’s attorney, to come to some kind of agreement,” Moody said. “It’s apparently going to be a legal issue from this point on between Mr. Curry’s attorney, Mr. Muller and county attorney Dan Shine.”

In a letter delivered to Curry about three days after his termination, council members said they fired Curry because he showed a “serious lack of judgement, bordering on ethical impropriety” during an U.S Equal Employment Opportunity Commission investigation directly related to his position and the circumstances surrounding his appointment.

Council members also wrote that Curry was “particularly slow and less than forthcoming in bringing the case to the attention of council.”

The EEOC and the S.C. Human Affairs Commission are investigating a case of possible discrimination concerning the selection process for Dillon County administrator.

A discrimination compliant was filed in March with both agencies by Dillon attorney Glenn Manning, who applied for the position of Dillon County administrator after it was vacated by Clay Young in 2008.

Manning said the fact Curry applied for the position after he negotiated the county administrator’s contract is a conflict of interest.

Manning maintains he didn’t get the position because of his race and council selected Curry because he’s white.

Moody wouldn’t comment on the EEOC investigation, but said he accompanied Curry to the May 21 EEOC meeting mentioned in council’s letter to Curry.

The case remains under investigation by both agencies.

Council’s next action will be to determine whether the public hearing on Curry’s termination will be held, Moody said.

If an agreement is reached among all parties, the public hearing may not be necessary, Moody said.

“After the called council meeting last week, it resulted in that Altman Byrd, Dan Shine and Carl Muller would meet to see if some negotiated settlement could be reached,” Moody said Wednesday. “Pending the results of those legal negotiations, that will determine council’s next action.”