GALLATIN, Tenn. (WKRN) — A lawsuit filed against the City of Gallatin and some members of the city council alleged that a former groundskeeper "did not want to resign his position but was forced to do so."
The lawsuit claimed former groundskeeper Jacob L. Alexander commented on a Facebook post about school vouchers in January and sparked retaliation from some city leaders.
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A friend of Alexander's allegedly posted "Most people were against school vouchers." Alexander then allegedly responded to the comment with: "It's kind of like the apartments in Gallatin, everyone is against it but the city council."
The lawsuit claimed council member Craig Hayes reached out to the director of the Parks and Recreation Department to discuss "how Alexander could be silenced, including, if he could be punished or even terminated." Additionally, the suit claimed council members Stephen Fann and Shawn Fennell also contacted the director and said "they wanted Alexander punished and/or fired."
"if you know what is best for you, you will either fire Jacob or cut his hours to 20 a week," is a message the suit claimed one of the councilmembers sent to the Parks and Recreation director.
The lawsuit then claimed "Alexander did not want to resign his position but was forced to do so" given "retaliation efforts and harassment" from city councilmembers. Hayes and Fann declined to comment. Fennell was unable to comment due to travel.
Alexander's opinion on Gallatin's growth as expressed in the suit isn't uncommon; several Gallatin residents, including Brian Robertson, have spoken up about the city's growth.
"With our current infrastructure, we can't accommodate the amount of traffic [or] the amount of people that are here," Robertson said. "You used to [be able to] get across town fairly easily in less than 10 minutes; now, it takes a half-hour."
The lawsuit seeks up to $500,000 in damages. News 2 has reached out to the City of Gallatin, Alexander and Alexander's attorney for comment. As of publication, there has been no response.