The Knox County Board of Supervisors gathered on November 26 for a meeting that ended up reversing decisions made in August concerning a Sheriff’s Deputy and other courthouse staff.
The Supervisors had released four Knox County staff at the August meeting, through a variety of actions – defunding the Knox County Attorney’s office and suspending Knox County Attorney Hanna Knox Jensen; eliminating the position of Deputy County Attorney John Thomas; and firing Sheriff’s Deputy Dan Henery and 911 Coordinator Heather Kienow.
In early September, a number of lawsuits had been filed against the County, and were in various stages of process, when, as the Supervisors accounted on the 26th – the “risk management association”, NIRMA, had required that the employees be rehired, settling two of those lawsuits.
But it was clear at least a few of the Supervisors weren’t happy with that decision – with at least three of the group indicating that their “hands were tied” in the outcome of the situation.
Chairman James Sokol, Jr. said he “remains outraged” by being effectively forced to take the action and rescind the decisions made in August.
After the action had been taken to re-hire and “reach settlement” with the Henery and Kienow, the Board turned its attention toward the County Attorney position.
As Hanna Knox Jensen was appointed to the position, not elected, when former County Attorney John Thomas resigned around the end of last year, the Board first reinstated Knox Jensen, and then appointed a new County Attorney of Danielle Myers-Noelle, and terminated the appointment of Hanna Knox Jensen.
Knox Jensen was present at the meeting, and attempted to comment on the issue prior to the Board’s vote, but was denied a chance to speak, as the Board has a “public comment” section at the beginning of each meeting, and said that since she didn’t speak then, she could not speak now.
But the Supervisors took their turns, with Supervisors Marty O’Connor, Kevin Mlady and Danny Schlote giving comments throughout the meeting on their “thoughts and feelings” about the issue.
Mlady indicated that the board was instructed they had not followed the Open Meetings Act with their action in August, and that he feels that what the board did was for the safety and welfare of county employees and the people of the county.
He called on the Nebraska Legislature to remedy the issue that faced the board – indicating thoughts on the Sheriff being in charge of hiring and firing of Sheriff employees. Mlady called on Sheriff Don Henery, who was at the meeting, to “have the backbone to dismiss the two” that the board had found in wrongdoing.
Supervisor O’Connor said that the board had been required to “reinstate employees who knowingly violated the law” and said that there is no way to hold them accountable for their actions, and no recourse at the county level of government.
O’Connor then relayed a listing of findings provided by the Board’s special investigation into the matter, saying that the Sheriff had known about the “secret” microphone for a year and didn’t tell the Board about it, and discussed the “computer forensic” report indicating users logging in to hear the meetings.
“We now have employees that cannot be fired for doing wrong, they know they can get by with anything, and the taxpayers deserve better,” said O’Connor.
Schlote mentioned NIRMA and that the board was instructed it did not have the “legal authority” to do the action in August, and that they were “forced to make a decision” to do something they didn’t want to.
He called voters to decide the issue for themselves in the next election.
Settlements paid for two
As part of the agreements with the Board, Dan Henery and Heather Kienow signed settlement agreements that were obtained through a public information request indicating that the County pay them for time missed, and also pay all their attorney fees.
All said, the Board agreed to reinstate both employees with a January 1, 2026 start date, “as if the Service Interruption had not occurred” and “shall not retaliate against the employee for having filed the litigation.”
In both settlement agreements it says “neither employee nor employer makes any admission of wrongdoing” and that financial settlement will be made as well to the employees – making up missed pay and benefits, and paying attorney fees on behalf of both Henery and Kienow.
Dan Henery’s settlement
terms included:
1. Reinstatement on November 26, 2025 and return to work on January 5, 2026.
2. Wages of $11,777.42; benefit reimbursement of $1,322.24; 54 PTO hours and 146 hours into his Extended Illness Savings Bank.
3. $11,888.90 paid to Stratton, DeLay, Carlson, Stover and Stratton law firm within 10 days of the dismissal of the litigation “with prejudice”
Heather Kienow’s settlement terms included:
1. Reinstatement on December 1, 2025
2. Wages of $14,169.51; benefit reimbursement of $1,372.39; 32.01 PTO hours
3. Payment of $10,000 to Copple, Rockey, Schlecht & Mason law firm within 5 days of the effective date and dismissal of the litigation “with prejudice” as well.
Still Pending
With two of the lawsuits presumably on their way to closure and dismissal, the County Board still faces a number of actions, primarily from former County Attorney John Thomas.
There is a pending suit challenging the “sealed documents” that were unsealed, then appealed that is in the Nebraska Court of Appeals, and a protective order filed by special attorneys David Begley and Eric Hagen that asks to “ensure the return or destruction of all sealed materials, to prevent any continued or future dissemination while the appeal is pending, and to preserve the integrity of the judicial process.”
When the court convened on the issue on November 25, both Judges Mark Johnson and Matthew Long have filed that they have a conflict to hear the case, and an appointment is being sought from the Nebraska Supreme Court to hear the case.
In a second lawsuit, Thomas seeks the legal vacating of the August 27 meeting’s decisions, that item has also been put on hold pending the new judge appointment.
In a third item, Thomas has filed a suit against the Board for a violation of the Open Meetings Act, by it’s action on August 27. That item remains in discovery and responses from both sides.
Knox County Sheriff Don Henery also still has an open case against the Supervisors, asking for the same as Thomas, a reversal of the decision in August by the Board, to reinstate the two employees, and other requests.