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CITY, ND – (NewsDakota.com) Valley City Police Lt. David Swenson is accusing Valley City Mayor Bob Werkhoven of creating an abusive and hostile work environment.
In his grievance Swenson accused the Mayor of trying to get people to protest his promotion to Lieutenant during a swearing in ceremony in November of 2015.
Swenson said several people have told him that Mayor Werkhoven doesn’t like me and City Attorney Myhre and City Administrator Schelkoph told me that the mayor told them that he wanted to get rid of Swenson.
Swenson said this issue stems from 2011 when the city of Valley City tried to fire Dean Ross and myself over false accusation. He said Ross and the city reached a settlement and Ross retired in good standing. Swenson said Mayor Werkhoven has disliked him since this incident.
Swenson’s attorney Joseph Larson said Mayor Werkhoven has hated Swenson for supporting former Police Chief Dean Ross and carried a personal grudge against Swenson.
Below is the full version of Swenson’s grievance against Mayor Bob Werkhoven followed by a news release by Swenson’s attorney Joseph Larson.