Ex-COD president's representatives say $25 million countersuit is another 'false attack'
Representatives for former College of DuPage President Robert Breuder issued a statement Saturday saying his former employer “is continuing its false attacks” through a countersuit against him.
COD's board of trustees is seeking at least $25 million in damages from Breuder as part of the counterclaim filed late Friday in federal court. The move came in response to Breuder's federal lawsuit filed more than two years ago claiming he was wrongfully terminated.
Breuder attorney Martin Dolan said Friday he was unable to immediately comment on COD's countersuit because he had yet to see the documents. Breuder's representatives issued the statement Saturday in response to COD's move.
“The counterclaim by COD is just another chapter in COD's abuse of power as described in Dr. Breuder's original complaint,” the statement says. “Despite having lost their appeal in the United States Court of Appeals, COD is continuing its false attacks.”
Breuder filed his lawsuit in October 2015, one day after being fired as president of the Glen Ellyn-based school. The suit names the board, former Trustee Kathy Hamilton and current members Chairwoman Deanne Mazzochi, Frank Napolitano and Charles Bernstein as defendants.
Hamilton, Mazzochi, Napolitano and Bernstein voted on Oct. 20, 2015, to fire Breuder roughly five months before he was scheduled to step down with a $763,000 severance package.
According to Breuder's lawsuit, Hamilton, with the help of the other trustees, ran a “malicious and wrongful scheme” that “tarnished” his professional reputation while trampling on his contractual and constitutional rights. The lawsuit also claims the defendants decided to terminate Breuder “long before October 20, 2015, based solely on their personal interests and political agendas.”
But in separate responses Friday, lawyers for the board, Mazzochi, Napolitano and Bernstein denied Breuder's claims and accused him of corrupt management of the college. Attorneys for Hamilton have until next month to file her response.