Motion to require HR director to issue public retraction over Fair Board remarks fails
Get AI-powered insights, summaries, and transcripts
Subscribe
Summary
A motion asking HR Director Jonathan Holmgren to draft a public retraction (to be read at the next business meeting and published in the Bonner County Daily Bee) for statements he made about the Fair Board failed after debate and public comment. Residents and Fair Board volunteers sought a public correction; legal counsel cautioned about ordering an employee to state an untruth.
Bonner County commissioners on Dec. 23 declined to direct Human Resources Director Jonathan Holmgren to draft a public retraction of statements he made in a Dec. 4 meeting that some Fair Board members said suggested they had acted outside their authority.
Commissioner Williams brought the item at the request of volunteer Fair Board members who said Holmgren's December remarks and a subsequent article in the Bonner County Daily Bee harmed volunteers’ reputations. His motion asked that Holmgren prepare a written retraction to be read at the next business meeting and published in the Daily Bee.
Members of the public and several Fair Board volunteers spoke during public comment, asking for a clear, public correction. Amy Lunsford said, "Sending an email does not give the public full view that an apology was actually made," and urged a correction visible to YouTube viewers who watch meetings online.
Prosecutor Nate Adams and county counsel had previously clarified the point during the Dec. 4 meeting, and County civil counsel urged caution in directing an employee to state a specific retraction. Jonathan Holmgren asked for legal clarification and warned that requiring an employee to state a falsehood would be illegal and unethical. After deliberation, commissioners split on whether a written and published retraction should be ordered; the roll-call vote to direct Holmgren to draft and publish the retraction failed.
Commissioners who opposed the motion said the Dec. 4 meeting record shows the statement was corrected on the record during that meeting and that multiple news accounts quoted the correction; commissioners who supported the motion said some Fair Board volunteers still wanted a published retraction because the newspaper article's framing left volunteers feeling tarnished.
The vote outcome means no formal board-directed retraction will be published; the HR director had previously sent an email apology to some Fair Board members but the board did not require further action.