Two more managers targeted in Water Management email scandal

Chicago City Hall. | Rich Hein/Sun-Times
Fran Spielman
@fspielman | email
Two more high-level supervisors face disciplinary action in the continuing fall-out from the offensive emails that forced a shake-up in the city’s scandal-scarred Department of Water Management.

Thomas J. Durkin, a $106,599-a-year general foreman of plumbers, has been placed on administrative leave without pay while Water Management Commissioner Randy Conner decides whether to follow Inspector General Joe Ferguson’s recommendation that Durkin be fired. Conner who is African-American, has been given carte blanche in a department with an ugly history of corruption and intolerance.

Sources said Durkin was accused of “sending and receiving” the same kinds of racist, sexist, homophobic and Islamophobic emails that have already triggered the ouster of three other Water Management bosses.

John J. Lee Jr., the $128,088-a-year superintendent of the Water Management’s south district, has also been placed on administrative leave tied to the email scandal.

Ferguson’s investigation is ongoing and is almost certain to trigger more high-level firings, City Hall sources said.

Last month, a housecleaning in the Department of Water Management at the center of the Hired Truck and city hiring scandals swept out Commissioner Barrett Murphy, managing deputy William Bresnahan and district superintendent Paul Hansen.

Sources said Murphy — whose wife, Lynn Lockwood, is a close friend of Emanuel’s wife, Amy Rule — offered his resignation after being held responsible for the chain of offensive emails sent by an underling whom the commissioner failed to discipline; Murphy was among those receiving the emails.
The Chicago Sun-Times was the first to report that Ferguson uncovered the derogatory emails circulating in the Department of Water Management while investigating allegations that Hansen had used his city email account to sell guns.

Murphy’s ouster was a stunner, even in a city department with a history of corruption that’s notorious for its ugly, hate-filled culture.

That’s because it came at the risk of losing two close friends.

Lockwood once chaired a political fundraising committee for the mayor. She’s an Emanuel appointee to the Chicago Public Library board who helped organize the 2012 NATO Summit for the mayor and had a one-year, $160,000 consulting contract with the tourism agency known as Choose Chicago.

The offensive emails were released on June 2, the same day that the Emanuel administration moved to insulate itself from discrimination claims and lawsuits tied to the email scandal with additional training and an outside review of city policies.

In March 2014, Hansen sent an anti-Muslim chain email to Murphy and Bresnahan. The email — with the subject line “Muslims My Ass…” — decried a perceived lack of Muslim influence in American culture, concluding with a reminder that Muslims carried out the Sept. 11, 2011 and 2013 Boston Marathon terror attacks.

“Have you heard a Muslim orchestra? Have you seen a Muslim band march in a parade? Have you witnessed a Muslim charity?” the email read.

The email went on to rhetorically ask: “Where were Muslims during the Civil Rights era of this country? Not present. There are no pictures or media accounts of Muslims walking side by side with Martin Luther King, Jr. or helping to advance the cause of Civil Rights.”

(The email does not note that Malcolm X, a leading voice in the civil rights era, was Muslim.)

Another one of those emails was sent in January 2014. It was a chain email Hansen sent to Murphy, and it included a series of caricature-like images of President Barack Obama holding signs, with some reading “Thank you for your support citizens peasants comerades! [sic]” “Don’t call your Senators, I and my trusty czars will handle everything!” and “If you’re a soldier, a Christian, or a hunter, you’re probably a TERRORIST!”

Like most chain emails, the messages encouraged recipients to forward them on to others.

Chicago Department of Water Management, home of “Wigs and Tits”

The City of Chicago’s Department of Water Management (DOWM) in its present state, is an absolute embarrassment to the entire United States and the whole world. Rahm Emanuel leaks more lies to the press, regarding the behavior and cover-ups of his most profitable enterprise and political money-making machine in the DOWM. Chicago Water Department. For decades, the Chicago Inspector General (Except David Hoffman) has been a willing participant in corruption, cronyism, bogus sweetheart contracts, and by allowing mayhem to ruin this great department.

Let’s talk about a few bright spots. Commissioner Powers did an acceptable job, but did not rein in his political subordinates. When you have a clout heavy employee POS going to the hockey games with the Mayor Emanuel, that who works under you, you cannot allow it. Powers did not control the crony’s idiots below him and paid a dear price. If you cannot control the clouted players, you are doomed. Powers did try to protect the drinking water in Chicago and in so doing, became the latest fall guy but got snuffed out by of Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Rahm only cares about green issues when he is the political beneficiary. (his foil is Donald J. Trump). I wish Mr. Powers well and God speed.

Barrett Murphy was just fired from the City of Chicago. He took the reins in May of 2016. I give him credit because when he was number two, he did his job to check on the DOWM crews now and then. When Murphy took over he again did not gain control the madness at the DOWM. Some people like to delegate and some like to control. Murphy would delegate and as a result, his employees under him screwed him in record time. Murphy looks like an absolute fool for allowing William “Bareback” Bresnahan and Paul “Hot Dog” Hansen to run amuck for years. I really doubt Murphy is a racist, and I really doubt he found humor in Paul Hansen’s actions. Murphy is another real fall guy but not for the reasons the Chicago Tribune’s Hal Dardick and Fran Spielman of the Chicago Sun Times wrote about him.

William “Bareback” Bresnahan was one entitled clouted player POS from Mt. Greenwood. Typical 19th Ward Clouted POS CPD enabler. Yes Sir, ole William Bresnahan is going home to his Chicago Police Captain wife and is going to need to explain how they are going to take a massive pay cut. Latest I heard is the possible removal of Bresnahan’s police powers. Who the hell wants someone with police powers acting out of control. William Bresnahan has been on my radar for a long time. He testified in court with Paul “Hamburger” Hansen during disciplinary hearings. Chicago hired an arbitrator, bought all the lies from Paul “Hotdog” Hansen.

Alderman Hansen’s son was an absolute self-engrossed idiot if I ever saw one. Since I started with Paul, I could not believe someone would not only hire him, but promote him. Every couple of years, old Paul would receive a promotion. Paul was not capable to do anything except talk big. Talk, talk, and talk shit. Paul Hansen was constantly in trouble but nothing became of it. He broke into cabinets, did as he pleased. He always acted as if anything he did, would have no consequences. Paul had a few guys he counted on to prop him up. They would be in his office every morning. Paul would drive like a fool making a cloud of dust. What a ham. If you think Paul Hansen is done with his city problems, you are wrong. Lawsuits regarding shoring are in route. The cover-ups of Paul Hansen transferring workers from district to district. What Paul Hansen did to Steve Broumas was unreal. Steve Broumas wrote up Paul Hansen at the Illinois Department of Human Rights. Paul went to Steve’s jobsite after and wrote him up. A clear act of retaliation. The entire top brass at the Department of Water Management needs to be fired. They cover up all the time for political hanks. Paul acted up at safety investigations, and was always confrontational. Paul blamed everyone except himself for years. In fact, years ago, Chicago Clout request Paul Hansen’s emails and then was blocked by the FOIA Officer. Yes, Chicago Clout is aware and has friends everywhere.

The future of the Department of Water Management. Mayor Rahm Emanuel, the cover-up and email obstructionist, enlisted at taxpayer’s money a law firm to fix the culture of the Department of Water Management. Rahm really hired them to provide political cover for his next election. Rahm wants this company to provide training for racial and behavioral oversight only for supervisors. Rahm does not want regular workers to know the law. This clout heavy law firm will provide a black lawyer to oversee the mess. If you remember my fellow City of Chicago Workers, the Shakman mess, they had workers filling out forms and then never promoted. The workers that filled out the information got the shaft. The water department cannot be fixed because they left people like Lucy Pope Cozzi Anderson to run things. Luci needs to explain why she was in Paul Hansen office on a regular basis. She needs to explain why her husband made it up the promotional ranks so quick. Rahm Emanuel must fire all the people that took illegal promotions. Nothing ever stopped because the bosses are all dirty. If you are at the Chicago Department of Water Management and you are a boss, this is what happens:

The Chicago Department of Water Management gives contracts to over 100 hundred separate companies. Since the Department has spent decades hiring and promoting people like Paul Hansen, it has no competent leadership. The private contractors are hidden from the public eye because of the false and fake “safety, security concerns”. What a crock of shit. These contractors provide nice second jobs after clout heavy families receive their first massive public pension. These companies provide the support to keep the ball rolling and provide political cover for the massive theft and fraud machine Rahm Emanuel controls. No one knows what these contractors do. Joe Ferguson has done nothing to open the books. Nothing. The Plumbers’ Union in Chicago is a willing participant in this ongoing fraud scheme. The lead in the Chicago drinking water is a mess. The recent death of a Chicago City Bricklayer is a mess. The Lack of shoring is a mess. The lack of qualified workers is a mess. The firing of the three bosses a mess. The recent promotion of Randy Connor, Rahm Emanuel knee jerk reaction to put a black commissioner to run the water department, is a nightmare in the making. The only way, Mayor Rahm Emanuel can fix the Department of Water Management is do the following:

Wait, that would put Chicago Clout out of stories. Keep doing the same shit Rahm, I will write about it. Suggestion to Paul Hansen, Superdog is on the Northside, maybe you can bring your grill skills. But I would leave the “Wig and Tits” bullshit disrespect for good. Superdog would not tolerate your bullshit.

Rahm Emanuel demands changes in water department announced; offensive emails released

Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s administration is moving to insulate itself from discrimination claims and lawsuits tied to the email scandal that forced a high-level shake-up in the city Department of Water Management.

Additional training for department employees, and an outside review of city policies, were announced Friday, three weeks after a housecleaning swept out Water Commissioner Barrett Murphy, managing deputy William Bresnahan and district superintendent Paul Hansen.

Later Friday, the city released copies of the offensive emails — messages that included racist, Islamophobic and sexist remarks.
Article by Fran Spielman Chicago Sun-Times

In March 2014, Hansen sent an anti-Muslim chain email to Murphy and Bresnahan. The email — with the subject line “Muslims My Ass…” — decried a perceived lack of Muslim influence in American culture, concluding with a reminder that Muslims carried out the Sept. 11, 2011, and 2013 Boston Marathon terror attacks.

“Have you heard a Muslim orchestra? Have you seen a Muslim band march in a parade? Have you witnessed a Muslim charity?” the email read.

The email went on to rhetorically ask: “Where were Muslims during the Civil Rights era of this country? Not present. There are no pictures or media accounts of Muslims walking side by side with Martin Luther King, Jr. or helping to advance the cause of Civil Rights.”

(Malcolm X, a leading voice in the civil rights era, was Muslim.)

Meanwhile, it was announced that all managers and supervisors in the water department — which also had been at the center of past scandals involving city hiring and the Hired Truck Program — will be required to undergo additional equal employment opportunity training.

The training was unveiled by Human Resources Commissioner Soo Choi and newly appointed Water Management Commissioner Randy Conner. It will be rolled out to other city departments “in the coming months.”

Corporation Counsel Ed Siskel also announced he has hired the Foley & Lardner law firm and attorney Z Scott, a former executive inspector general for the governor, to conduct an “independent, third-party review” of the city’s diversity and equal employment opportunity policies.

The firm will “make recommendations to prevent and address discrimination in the workplace,” Siskel said.

Changes will be made to ensure that “not only are employees and supervisors aware of the policy, but that complaints are reported and investigated in a timely manner,” officials said.

The moves are aimed at staying ahead of any lawsuits or harassment claims; the water department email scandal could provide fodder for such legal action.

Sources said Murphy — whose wife is a close friend of Emanuel’s wife, Amy Rule — was held responsible for the racist and sexist emails sent by Hansen; the commissioner failed to discipline Hansen, even though Murphy was among those receiving the emails.

Another one of those emails was sent in January 2014. It was a chain email Hansen sent to Murphy, and it included a series of caricature-like images of President Barack Obama holding signs, with some reading “Thank you for your support citizens peasants comrades! [sic]” “Don’t call your Senators, I and my trusty czars will handle everything!” and “If you’re a soldier, a Christian, or a hunter, you’re probably a TERRORIST!”

Like most chain emails, the messages encouraged recipients to forward them on to others.

Choi said Friday that the city “is committed to ensuring equal opportunity in the workplace, and no acts of discrimination will be tolerated.”

Conner is the new African-American commissioner in a department with an ugly history of corruption and intolerance. He’s been given carte blanche to clean house.

“As the incoming commissioner, I am committed to fostering an inclusive, welcoming environment,” a City Hall announcement quoted Conner as saying.

Like the Water Management shakeup, the new moves were announced late on a Friday — City Hall’s traditional burial ground for bad or embarrassing news.

Rahm Emnauel’s City Water Department emails reveal racial insensitivity, sexism Water Department

A former city Water Department superintendent used his work email to distribute anti-Obama polemics, with some of his messages veering off into racially insensitive, anti-Islamic and sexist territory, documents obtained by the Tribune show.
Hal Dardick Contact Reporter

A former city Water Department superintendent used his work email to distribute anti-Obama polemics, with some of his messages veering off into racially insensitive, anti-Islamic and sexist territory, documents obtained by the Tribune show.

Some of the emails were sent to former water Commissioner Barrett Murphy and former Managing Deputy Commissioner William Bresnahan, according to the documents.

Both resigned last month amid a Department of Water Management shakeup that sources said was triggered by an inspector general’s investigation into racist and sexist email messages distributed within the long-troubled agency. District Superintendent Paul Hansen, of 7208 West Olive Avenue, who sent the messages, also resigned.

A man who identified himself over the phone as Hansen hung up Friday on a Tribune reporter trying to ask questions about the emails. Attempts to reach Murphy and Bresnahan were not successful.

The emails reviewed by the Tribune were provided by the city in response to an open records request. They are just some of the allegedly racist and sexist messages that are part of the investigation, a source familiar with the matter said.

A message sent by Hansen to Murphy and Bresnahan in March 2014 includes a missive penned by “an American citizen” in response to an imprecisely quoted statement by then-President Barack Obama that “Islam has always been a part of America’s history.”

It goes on to falsely contend that Muslims played no role in several significant historical events, including the Civil War and the civil rights era, and conclude: “Muslim Heritage, my ass.”

Gun deal emails spurred city probe into racist, sexist Water Department messages
In January 2014, Hansen sent a message first to Murphy and minutes later to Bresnahan about checking a water fountain on the 2700 block of Irving Park Road, the site of Horner Park.

“Got a call from an asian carp calling from his obama issued aquaphone tellin me it taste funny!” Hansen wrote.

Hansen that same month also forwarded to Murphy a series of images of anti-Obama signs the email says were posted along a highway in Seattle. In November 2015, Hansen and other supervisors circulated a lengthy, profanity-laced anti-Obama joke among one another.

In a February 2014 email, Hansen uses sexist language as he makes fun of a colleague in response to a lengthy message he sent to Hansen about a frozen water main. “After all that long winded jib jab that i could get plenty of at home with the kotex mafia, you going back!” Hansen wrote.

Hansen also was the recipient of a March 2014 email that linked to an online video showing several Kenyans unsuccessfully trying to fly an aircraft they had built. “They are human beings. Just like us! Only 100 years later,” reads a message in bold above the link. That message also was received by a department foreman.

Hours after the city released the emails to the Tribune, new water Commissioner Randy Conner announced that all managers and supervisors in his department would be provided with additional training on federal Equal Employment Opportunity regulations designed to prevent discrimination in the workplace.

City officials also said that additional training for other city departments would follow and that the city was hiring the Foley & Lardner law firm “to conduct an independent, third-party review of the city’s diversity and equal employment opportunity policy and make recommendations to prevent and address discrimination in the workplace.”

The probe that led to the resignations of Murphy, Bresnahan and Hansen began more than eight months ago.

Inspector General Joseph Ferguson’s office was looking into water department emails about gun deals when it discovered sexist and racist emails, sources have told the Tribune. Hansen’s computer was seized as part of the investigation, the sources said.

Murphy, the former commissioner, is married to Lynn Lockwood, who at one time was chairman and treasurer of one of Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s political funds and is a friend of Chicago first lady Amy Rule.

Emanuel last month said he was made aware by Ferguson’s office of a problem with “one particular employee” and “in that process, it exposed a culture in the Water Department workplace” that doesn’t represent city values.

He also said that Murphy agreed after the emails surfaced that there should be a reset in the culture of the agency, now headed by Conner, who moved over from the city Department of Transportation.

Hansen has his own political connections. He’s the son of former 44th Ward Ald. Bernard Hansen.

The Water Department was long rattled by negative headlines under former Mayor Richard M. Daley’s administration, which was rocked by the Hired Truck scandal and an illegal jobs scam run under former top water official Donald Tomczak, who served time in prison.

Under Tomczak, jobs and promotions were handed out in exchange for political work, creating an army of ground troops for multiple political campaigns, including Emanuel’s successful 2002 bid for Congress.

Chicago Tribune’s Todd Lighty contributed.

hdardick@chicagotribune.com