Tim Ryan, tryan@wolfrivermedia.com
A former Shawano County sheriff’s detective who filed a civil suit in federal court this week against the county and Sheriff Adam Bieber is demanding that the case be heard by a jury, according to court records.
Wade Wudtke is alleging he was harassed and forced out of his job by Bieber and members of the Shawano County Board over his support for incumbent Sheriff Randy Wright in the 2014 election.
The suit specifically names Bieber and five county supervisors who were serving at the time on the county’s administrative and insurance committee: Jerry Erdmann, Deb Noffke, Bonnie Olson, Gene Hoppe and William Switalla.
The suit maintains several County Board members “actively supported Bieber, donating funds, providing information and publicly campaigning for him.”
Among them, according to the lawsuit, were supervisors Marlin Noffke, Bert Huntington and Mike McClelland, though they were not named as defendants.
According to the suit, “(Deb) Noffke told people she was the campaign manager for Bieber.”
The suit seeks damages for both past and future wage and benefit loss; compensatory damages for emotional distress, loss of reputation and loss of earning capacity; punitive damages against the individual defendants; and legal fees and court costs.
There is no dollar amount specified, with some of those amounts still to be determined, according to the civil complaint.
However, Wudtke filed a notice of claim against the county in July maintaining he had suffered damages in excess of $50,000, including loss of employment opportunities, income and benefits, emotional and psychological distress, and loss of reputation.
Notice of claims typically precede formal civil action, giving the county a heads-up on what to expect and providing an opportunity to investigate the allegations before a suit is filed.
County Corporation Counsel Tony Kordus said Friday that the county has not yet been served with the complaint, which was filed Thursday in the Eastern District federal court in Green Bay. But, he said, the county was aware of the suit.
Kordus said that if and when the complaint is served, “Shawano County shall defend the lawsuit vigorously and submits the lawsuit has no merit.”
He said the county would have no other comment given the fact litigation is pending.
A call to Wudtke’s attorney for comment was not returned.
Wudtke resigned in March 2015, about two months after Bieber took office, and took a job with the Clintonville Police Department; a job that the suit maintains involved “harder hours and a much lower rate of pay.”
The starting salary for a Clintonville patrol officer in March of last year was $23,073. Wudtke was last making $26.69 an hour in Shawano County.
The suit maintains Wudtke “was ultimately constructively discharged from his position as a deputy sheriff because of his protected political activities in violation of his rights.”
In an interview with the Leader after Wudtke’s departure last year, Bieber said Wudtke’s resignation was unexpected. He also said Wudtke’s letter of resignation did not give a reason for leaving.
Wudtke’s suit also claims that “Bieber continued to retaliate against him by defaming his good name and reputation and unlawfully interfering with his employment opportunities with other law enforcement agencies.”
The suit accuses Bieber of threatening to cut off the Bonduel Police Department’s access to the sheriff’s department because Bonduel was considering hiring Wudtke.
His suit maintains the resignation was the result of a harassment campaign that followed an incident at the Shawano County Republican Party picnic on July 22, 2014.
Bieber spoke at the picnic as a candidate for sheriff. Wudtke raised several questions with Bieber after the speech in an exchange that apparently became confrontational.
The incident led to an investigation by the county’s administrative committee, which hired an attorney to look into the matter.
The county has not released any information about the attorney’s investigation or what conclusions were reached.
In an interview in January of last year, shortly after he took office, Bieber said he was willing to put the picnic incident behind him.
“I’m just coming here doing my job and I’ll work with anybody,” he said. “On their end, I don’t know.”
Bieber said at the time he had already made amends with one of the three detectives who were on hand at the Republican picnic.
“The other two guys, I haven’t talked to,” he said. “I’m going about my business and they’re going about their business. As long as they do their job, I’m going to do my job. I don’t hold any grudges. I don’t wish them ill. I wish them the best. I’ll work with them.”
Bieber told the Leader on Friday he still wishes Wudtke well.
“I wish Wade the best in his future endeavors,” Bieber said. “It’s unfortunate that he’s unhappy with the choices he’s made.”
The suit maintains that supervisors supporting Bieber in the sheriff’s race launched the investigation into the picnic incident to retaliate against Wudtke. It argues that Wudtke’s rights of free speech and political affiliation were violated, and that Wudtke did not violate any county policies or law enforcement code.
Wudtke was questioned twice about the picnic incident, according to the suit, then questioned again about a Jan. 21, 2015, “recording incident” that took place with sheriff’s department staff.
According to the suit, Wudtke opted to wear a recording device rather than take notes at the meeting.
The suit maintains the subsequent investigation into that incident was another pretext to retaliate against Wudtke for his opposition to Bieber’s bid for sheriff.
The suit also alleges that on several occasions Bieber told others, including the union representative, that he wanted to get rid of Wudtke.
In addition to financial damages, the suit is also asking for a court order finding that the defendants violated Wudtke’s First Amendment rights.
Wudtke had been a deputy sheriff for Shawano County since 1999. He was hired as a patrol officer and became school resource officer in July 2006. He became a detective in December 2007.