As you may have heard late last year, Erie County’s Department of Social Services Commissioner resigned amid reports from local media of misconduct. We later learned former Commissioner Al Dirschberger has been accused of raping a subordinate in the Department of Social Services while away at a conference, and subsequently indicted by the Albany County District Attorney’s Office. The allegations are serious, sickening, and must be fully investigated.
 
While this is a criminal matter, Erie County government cannot shirk its responsibility to its employees or to taxpayers. The alleged victim recently filed a Notice of Claim, indicating she plans to sue Erie County based on her allegations.   She claims there were previous reports of sexual abuse or harassment committed by Mr. Dirschberger, and that the county took no action to discipline Mr. Dirschberger or rectify the problem.  If true, that is inexcusable.
 
Since local media outlets began reporting on the impending lawsuit, a call to action has been made loud and clear.  Earlier this month, Erie County Comptroller Stefan Mychjaliw asked Legislature Chairman Peter Savage to appoint an independent special investigator to determine what happened and when.  I agreed with this call for an independent investigation, which is why I took legislative action to create a special investigator. 
 
At our March 15th Legislative session, I submitted a resolution calling for an independent investigation into Erie County’s handling of  this troubling situation. There are several main questions I believe need answers: Was the county negligent in the hiring and supervision of Al Dirschberger? Was anyone in county government aware of sexual harassment and/or abuse by Al Dirschberger while he was employed by Erie County, and allowed said conduct to continue unabated? Was the county negligent in their duty to protect employees from the danger posed by Al Dirschberger? Who had, or should have had actual or constructive notice of the prior actions of Al Dirschberger, specific to sexually harassing and/or abusing employees in his charge?
 
I am proud to say my resolution passed the Legislature unanimously.  We will now move forward with the process I outlined to get the truth. We are now drafting a Request for Proposals to find independent counsel to investigate the matter. Those proposals will be submitted within the next month for review by a bipartisan committee of legislators. By May 10th, we will pick the best proposal, appoint a special investigative counsel,  and allow that counsel to move forward with the investigation.
 
The selection process will be nonpartisan in order to allow a transparent, non-political process to unfold.  We must also ensure the investigator is truly independent. There must be no connection to Mr. Dirschberger, the county executive, any members of his administration, or the County Legislature. If there was negligence, there are a number of people who could be held liable, and we need to explore every possibility. I am confident we will get to the bottom of what happened through this independent investigation.
 
If you have questions or comments, feel free to reach my office at 858-8922 or email joseph.lorigo@erie.gov.