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So far, this story is just a he-said, she-said. It’s difficult to tell what’s really going on here, retaliation or individual corruption.
A state worker fired by the Blagojevich administration for allegedly rigging job applications complained about the number of outside contractors her agency was hiring, then weeks later found herself the subject of an investigation.Dawn DeFraties, who was personnel director for the Department of Central Management Services, argued in a November 2004 e-mail that a review of her bureau duplicated work that was already under way by another consultant.
“Why do we have to do this again?” DeFraties asked in an e-mail obtained by The Associated Press.
Her boss, Ed Wynn, responded that the work done by the other contractor - The Revere Group Ltd. - wasn’t what the department needed. He said he wanted a consultant he knew from a private-sector job to do it correctly.
But…
“Dawn didn’t want someone looking at her bureau,” DeJong said. “I don’t believe this is evidence of duplicative work; in fact, it’s not. This is evidence that Dawn had something to hide.”Administration officials say Simmons’ work uncovered irregularities that prompted an investigation by Blagojevich’s inspector general, who found that DeFraties and Casey altered civil-service grades to favor some applicants and graded preferred applicants before others to get them hired more quickly.
Then again…
However, state documents are not clear about Simmons’ role.Three main witnesses against DeFraties and Casey told investigators that they had either not talked to Simmons, did not discuss special treatment of some applicants with her, or took their concerns directly to Wynn.
posted by Rich Miller
Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 9:32 am
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How would she know which grades to change or people to move to the top of the list unless someone above her was giving her the info.Does this make enough sense to tie this list that is floating around or MAYBE one that the people in the Gov.’s office has shredded.What happened to the Cole woman.
Comment by DOWNSTATE Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 10:06 am
So was Dawn getting money/gifts under the table from job candidates to raise their scores or was she doing what she was told by higher ups? Find it hard to believe that she was responsible for hiring all these people and the individuals within the departments had absolutely nothing to do with who they hired.
Comment by zatoichi Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 10:36 am
The Big Picture?
Not stating as fact, just posing a question to bloggers, does the fact she is willing to fight the governor, and the list being made public show the vulnerability to the governor?
Consider it took years and several indictments to get Ryan’s people to turn and had to threaten to put Fawell’s fiance’ in prison for him to turn.
With no actual indictments yet, Blago’s administrtion is losing passengers faster then the Titanic and leaking as same.
Comment by the Patriot Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 10:39 am
Rumor in 3 places is she was wired.Does anyone know anymore about this.
Comment by DOWNSTATE Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 11:04 am
Failed to add that some in the gov.’s office know it and that is why they are piling it on.
Comment by DOWNSTATE Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 11:05 am
Hey, I’m a taxpayer from the Quad Cities. We sent Springfield $55 billion a year and the top three issues are education funding, jobs and high gas prices. I’m for good government, but let’s make sure the bureaucratic energy is focused on those three big issues first.
Comment by quad cities Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 12:15 pm
What I find most disturbing is that it took the OIG’s office almost a year to investigate and they couldn’t find the link in the Governor’s Office. This does not pass the “smell test.” I assume the OIG staff are double Rutan exempt and work at the “will of the Governor.”
Comment by Swami Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 12:28 pm
Ed Wynn is a greaseball. He was the one who arranged the brain-dead reaction to the Auditor General’s first scathing report of CMS - “Audit the auditor!” Stunningly stupid. Trust me: if Ed Wynn is involved, sleaze is invoved.
So, Ed, how exactly did Dawn pick the ones to help? Were they all her friends or someone else’s? Is there a prior connection to her with any of them? I wonder what Cini and Giannoulis know about this? Well, Giannoulis isn’t really involved in the day-to-day personnel stuff, he just gets paid like he is.
What about Campbell? He brings in his former college professors for a taste of the consultant’s pot of gold. Or did Dawn arrange that, too?
Comment by Anonymous Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 12:43 pm
Quad-
Well, we got education funding by selling the lottery, more jobs by the good work of DeFraties, Casey and the people somebody sent to them, and high gas prices by basically doing nothing. So I’d say we got our $55 billion worth.
Comment by Six Degrees of Separation Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 12:57 pm
Oh and on the Defraties wearing a wire thing, if she is wearing a wire, I would venture to say it is a rather dull recording, perhaps one filled with random singing and curse words. With no state office to report to, whom do you anticipate she would be recording?
Comment by Harley1211 Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 1:15 pm
From reading the article, it appears that her termination was in retaliation for speaking out about too many contract going to too many people to do the same work.
As a former state employees I know the “conspiracy theory”.
After, she voiced her concerns, Wynn later contracted Simmons, a friend of his, to look into her work. Now they are alleging that she was opposed to someone looking into her work.
Why was the contractor, Simmons, needed to look into her work? My guess is Simmons was used to create what is now allegations against Defraties that led to her termination. Basically, the work of Simmons, the contractor, looking into her work led to her firing.
THE INSPECTOR GENERAL’S INVESTIGATION
This was allegedly investigated by former Executive Inspector General Z. Scott, who was fired in July. What evidence did the EIG have that determined that Defraties engaged in the alleged rigging of hiring? Did Z. Scott know during her investigation about the “clout list” maintained by the Governor’s office? Was the “clout list” used in her investigation to come to her determination.
As someone stated earlier, the EIG is at the disposal of the Governor and his administration. If the EIG doesn’t do or investigate as the Governor or his administration wants, he or she can be fired at the drop of a dime.
Z. Scott needs to be on the witness stand!
Comment by ONE MAN CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 1:49 pm
This one sure doesn’t pass the smell test. Why all the stink and commotion from the Gov’s office if this employee was truely a bad egg and lying about the described happenings? It doesn’t make sense.
Yes, I believe this is an example of Blago’s vulnerability. Seeing how the pre-Blago employees have been treated by Blago’s hacks, there will be a lot of people willing to throw Gov. Soundbite and his merry gang under a bus. There are about 20,000 people with personal horror stories who wouldn’t mind the opportunity to stick to anybody with ties to the Gov.
Comment by Papa Legba Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 2:38 pm
My question is if the first contractor did not do the job the way the contract stated, did CMS Pay for it? I have heard all over CMS there were contractors doing duplicate work for big $$$. My guess is Dawn will bring these boys down.
Comment by Where's the Leadership??? Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 2:48 pm
My goodness, didn’t Mr. Wynn view the Ethics slide show? Maybe these agency directors need more scrutiny from the legislature before they are hired.
Comment by Emily Booth Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 3:58 pm
You know? the administration should simply refuse to comment at this point. Abby’s comments were silly and Justin’s remarks are downright stupid. I agree completely with 12:43 pm anon.
To suggest that this woman came up with all of this herself, as the administration is doing, is quite frankly insulting to not only our intelligence (those who have worked in this field for any length of time) and the intelligence of the general populace of the state.
Quite simply, the GOVERNOR’S OFFICE benefited from Dawn’s putting these people in those jobs, NOT Dawn!
Another great move by the kid from New York and Elvis.
Comment by Minion Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 9:08 pm
Minion is right, because the minions are by nature right.
I don’t know any of the people involved, but it looks real bad to me.
Comment by Goodbye Napoleon Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 9:20 pm
I know Dawn. Strongly partisan Democrat, but definitely not a mope. I think the Governor’s office picked the wrong person for a fall guy. My guess is this could be the thread that unravels the whole sweater.
I still can’t figure out why they fired these two – they had successfully buried them in other agencies and they probably would have kept their mouths shut. Maybe somebody had to go under the bus and this administration always figures that if they can out shout the other side they win. Might not work so well with the feds though.
Comment by Old Elephant Thursday, May 25, 06 @ 9:28 pm
To Harley1211- you need to get your moped off your head. IF she was wearing the “wire”, she was most likely wearing it for the past 1-2 years, while she was still changing grades for those applicants that John G or Cini sent her to “evaluate”. Duhhhh- that makes it potentially devestating to the blagomachine.
Comment by roy slade Friday, May 26, 06 @ 8:01 am
To Roy Slade: can you speak into the flower, please. Sounds like you are in the know!
Comment by Brad Tusk's Ego Friday, May 26, 06 @ 9:33 am
As Roy Coleman (IDNR employee gagged and forced to settle his discrimination case against the Blagos with a confidentiality clause for promoting Scott “Baby Boy” Flood over him) said in the Belleville News Democrat earlier this week, “It’s all over but the shouting.”
If you’re a state employee and have similar experiences with the Blagojevich Administration now is the time to come forward. It’s time to be a part of the solution, don’t perpuate the problem.
The only reason someone in Ms. DeFraties’ position would be laying herself out in the public arena like this is for a greater good. The guilty go silently into the night. The innocent seek to bring it all into the light.
Comment by A Proportionate Response Friday, May 26, 06 @ 10:01 am
I am so made about Dawn. Dawn worked hard for the Sangamon County Democrats for years. It’s time they stood up and helped her. Everyone that knows her must realize what the score is here.
Comment by Pat Friday, May 26, 06 @ 7:04 pm
If you think this story has teeth now, just wait until investigators and the media begin to report what they have found with regard to hiring irregularities at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Museum. They are looking specifically at the Deputy Director hire as well as the Guest Service Manager hire. Let’s see what they come up with ….
Comment by Paula McNichols Tuesday, May 30, 06 @ 3:59 pm