County attorney addresses supe’s defamation case

FLORENCE — Pinal County Attorney Kent Volkmer today addressed allegations against top elections official Dana Lewis by Supervisor Kevin Cavanaugh.

In recent weeks, Cavanaugh, who represents Maricopa in District 1 and is running for county sheriff, filed a $456,000 claim against the county March 21 for “reputational harm and impact to future employment.” He also called for Lewis to be fired from her job as county recorder.

Cavanaugh charged Lewis with publishing false and defamatory accusations he committed a federal crime. He said he has no faith she can be unbiased in his election later year.

Cavanaugh’s evidence for this came in a series of emails obtained by InMaricopa. A pseudonymous whistleblower called John Doe made a slew of claims against Lewis, which included misusing county funds for her campaign and failure to uphold election integrity.

In response, the board this morning voted waive attorney-client privilege to inform the public about the allegations, allowing Volkmer to say there was “no substantiated concern.” He said an investigation revealed Cavanaugh’s claims not only proved incorrect, but also appeared to come from someone employed with the county.

“Ultimately, we discovered that the vast majority of these anonymous emails appear to be from a disgruntled employee who does not care for Lewis,” he said.

Instead, Volkmer commended Lewis, stating she “increased the number of redundances and audit trails” in the elections process so “there’s no longer one person ever making a decision.”

Cavanaugh was not present at the meeting to defend his claims but joined by telephone more than two hours into the meeting for other agenda items. He did not address the allegations.

Board members are left with several possible options to move ahead, according to Volkmer: paying the claim, denying it or allowing it to run its course. If denied, Cavanaugh could progress to an actual lawsuit.

“Unless it’s filed, this will effectively be hanging over the head of the board,” Volkmer said.