Ex-Hawthorn Woods official sues over dismissal

A former trustee and director of parks and recreation for the village of Hawthorn Woods has filed a federal lawsuit claiming she was fired because of her loyalties to the previous administration.

However, defendants said the lawsuit is typical political fodder from former mayor Keith Hunt, who is the attorney for Kimberly Lynch, the plaintiff of the lawsuit.

The litigation, filed Sept. 8, also claims Lynch was penalized because she told people in the community Chief Operating Officer Pamela Newton kept toys that had been collected for the Toys for Tots program in 2009, and that the village hired Newton and finance Director Kristen Kazenas to full-time jobs despite not having money in the village budget to do so.

"This is classic Keith Hunt. The village is not surprised by these tactics," Newton said. "While it may have been a good idea to retain a few storm trooper action figures for additional staffing, all late arriving holiday gifts were distributed to needy children."

Hunt, who served as mayor from 2001 through 2009, filed the lawsuit through his law firm, Hunt and Associates of Chicago.

He said the lawsuit is not about him, but rather because Lynch was violated by being terminated without just cause.

"I was a civil rights lawyer before I was mayor and I am a civil rights lawyer now," Hunt said. "This is not about Keith Hunt. It's about them violating Kim Lynch's rights."

Hunt promoted Lynch to the head of parks and recreation after she served with him as a trustee on the village board between 2001 and 2007.

The suit claims Lynch was demoted from parks and recreation coordinator to director of the Hawthorn Woods Aquatic Center in 2009 by Newton and Mayor Joseph Mancino, both political foes of Hunt. The suit alleges the two later fired Lynch because of her political ties, not because of job performance.

Newton, Mancino were named in the lawsuit, along with the village, Kazenas, employee Donna Lobaito, and trustees Neil Morgan, David Andani, Kelly Corrigan and Steve Reiss.

The lawsuit seeks back pay, reinstatement of Lynch as parks and recreation coordinator, punitive damages and attorney's fees.

Lynch claims in the lawsuit she was a political supporter of Hunt while serving as a trustee before being named parks and recreation coordinator in 2009. The suit adds that the other trustees, Newton and the employees were supporters of Mancino, who became mayor after Hunt decided to not seek re-election in 2009.

After hiring Newton and Kazenas to full-time salaries, Lynch was demoted to aquatic center director because she questioned whether money should be spent on those two positions, the suit states. It also claims her salary was reduced from full-time wages of $50,000 annually, to a part-time salary of $35,000 a year.

According to the lawsuit, she was officially terminated in March 2010, and was told by Kazenas it was because of performance deficiencies. No problems were listed in her personnel file, the suit states.

The suit also claims Mancino told Lynch she was terminated because she didn't support him, his administration, or Newton.

"The village does not comment on personnel issues, but can attest that specialized legal counsel was followed regarding employment issues with Ms. Lynch," Newton said of the allegations. "Our legal team will respond to the four counts attributed to the village once they have reviewed the document."

The lawsuit further states trustees became upset with Lynch and agreed to her demotion and termination because she refused to hire a child of one trustee as a lifeguard without any experience, then fired another because he was stealing.

Mancino said he could not comment in depth about the lawsuit because of pending litigation, but added: "This lawsuit is more about Keith's desire for attention than a labor issue. We will address it in proper venue after our legal team has reviewed it. Maybe even in the state's attorneys office."