Williamson County Schools released on Tuesday, July 14, 2015 the findings from an attorney hired in response to the Hillsboro Audio Tape Investigation. The report found all implicated parties to be innocent, and the investigation is now complete.
A law firm by the name of Leitner, Williams, Dooley and Napolitan, was hired by the Williamson County Board of Education to explore the allegations and deliver a report back on their findings. Attorney J. Gregory Grisham who was assigned to the case, sent a detailed report to the board on the evening Monday, July 13, 2015.
The conclusion of Grisham’s findings as stated in the report:
In addition, counsel also found that Superintendent Mike Looney “has not engaged in conduct that could be considered disloyal to the Board or engaged in political activity in violation of WCS policy or state law that governs his conduct as Superintendent.”
On April 2, 2015 an audio recording of a conversation between a group of Hillsboro employees surrounding politics, and criticizing newly elected school board members. The recording was aired on WWTN 99.7’s Ralph Bristol show and on YouTube.
In legal documents it is stated, “An off-premises meeting was held after school on or about September 29,2014 at the Leipers Fork Pavilion which was approximately a mile and a half from Hillsboro School.”
Named in the papers is a list of ten Hillsboro employees and documentation of communications made by one of the employees who attended: “Information in her email about a September faculty meeting at Hillsboro and stated, among other things, that it was announced that an informational meeting would be held by a “non-biased group called Williamson Strong” and shared other statements that were made at the meeting.”
Controversy began as allegations were made about where the meeting took place, and if the meeting, political in nature, was mandatory for the employees to attend. Three School Board members, Susan Curlee, District 12, Mark Gregory, District 11 and P.J. Mezera, District 3, are reported to have expressed concern and ask about the launch of a legal investigation.