EDWARDSVILLE – Former Madison County officials Robert Dorman and Douglas Hulme claim police from four cities interfered with their employment contracts by persuading county board members to vote for their termination.
They seek damages from Edwardsville, Alton, Granite City, and Collinsville in a suit their counsel Edward Moorman of Alton filed in circuit court on April 15.
The county board fired Hulme as administrator and Dorman as information technology director last April.
Hulme and Dorman sued the county seeking recovery of their jobs last year.
The current filing concerns the role of city police in a task force that former state’s attorney Tom Gibbons created in 2018.
Gibbons led the task force until visiting judge Jerry Crisel found a conflict with his duty to act as counsel for county board chairman Kurt Prenzler.
Crisel appointed Illinois attorney general Kwame Raoul to lead the investigation, and Raoul closed the case without bringing charges in 2019.
Moorman’s complaint against the cities stated that the task force was made up of sheriff’s deputies and employees of the cities.
He claimed each city contributed to their pay and in part directed their conduct.
He claimed they induced breaches of contracts by specifically calling for termination of each plaintiff’s employment.
He claimed they made false and unsupported accusations of improper conduct and in some cases alleged criminal misconduct.
He separately alleged retaliatory discharge of his clients as whistleblowers.
“The basis of the termination of plaintiffs’ employment was the fact that plaintiffs had discovered improper or illegal conduct on the part of various Madison County officials,” he wrote.
He seeks damages in loss of salary, pension rights, insurance, and other benefits.
Chief Judge William Mudge assigned Circuit Judge Christopher Threlkeld.