Former Montgomery County Planning Director Gwen Wright has filed a lawsuit alleging the Maryland-National Capital Parks and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC) is not complying with the Maryland Public Information Act and withholding records she requested.
The Montgomery County Planning Board fired Wright in October, three months before she was set to retire. No reason was given, but Wright has said she believed it may have been because of her support of former Planning Board Chair Casey Anderson after allegations were lodged against him.
This week brought the news that an investigative report essentially cleared Anderson of allegations that he created a “toxic misogynistic workplace.”
Anderson had been placed on temporary unpaid leave in September for having a full bar of alcohol in his office. Then, the County Council received allegations of a hostile work environment at the Planning Board in October. The council forwarded these claims to the M-NCPPC for a full investigation. Wright was fired as Planning Board director in October – with commissioners Vice Chair Partap Verma, Gerald R. Cichy, Tina Patterson and Carol Rubin voting to remove her during a closed session. Anderson was reportedly absent. Soon after, the entire Planning Board resigned at the request of the council.
The suit states that Wright requested specific records from M-NCPPC following her termination–including emails and text messages Verma, Rubin, Cichy and Patterson exchanged between Aug. 19 and Oct. 12, and any records of any kind regarding her termination. Wright and her lawyers allege M-NCPPC did not produce any records of text messages, and that the agency claimed they were not public records.
“The text messages requested, whether on the Commissioners’ personal or business phones, are relevant public records relating to Ms. Wright’s underlying claim because the Commissioners regularly conducted business via text, and presumably discussed Ms. Wright’s termination via text,” the suit alleges.
In the suit, Wright and her lawyers also argue that Verma was trying to oust Anderson so he could assume the role as chair and that Wright was wrongfully terminated in response to her support of Anderson.
Verma did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A spokesperson with M-NCPPC said the agency does not have a comment because the lawsuit is pending litigation.
Wright filed the suit in Montgomery County District Court on March 9. She is represented by Timothy Maloney, a civil litigation attorney with Joseph, Greenwald & Laake in Greenbelt.
A pretrial hearing is set for Aug. 25, with Judge James Bonifant presiding.
Wright is suing for the court to order M-NCPPC produce the text messages, as well as for legal fees and $1,000 in damages.
Wright had served as director of the county’s Planning Department since 2013 and had been with the M-NCPPC—a commission that serves Montgomery and Prince George’s counties—from 1987 to 2008, according to her LinkedIn page. She also served in Alexandria’s Planning Department from 2008 to 2013.
One month before her termination, Wright received an award from the American Planning Association National Capital Area Chapter for her leadership of the Planning Department, including for shepherding the development of Thrive Montgomery 2050, the county’s proposed update to its general master plan.
